Gold Coin 5 Oz Mississippi Steamboat 2015 Pearl Proof

5 Oz Gold Coin with Pearl - Mississippi Steamboat

This unique gold coin with an inner core of genuine mother of pearl is part of the "Mother of Pearl" series. Minted in the purest 99.9% gold, the 5 Oz (155.5 g) coin, issued by the Cook Islands for 2015, commemorates a major breakthrough in water transportation and depicts an American steamboat on the Mississippi River.

The inner pearl in a brown hue, set into the coin, depicts on its reverse the classic image of a steamboat in the American South in the 19th century. The atmosphere is enhanced by clouds of steam rising from the funnels and the undulating furrow of the ship on the surface of the Mississippi. Portions of the image transition to the coin's gold rim, which bears the inscription ''MISSISSIPPI STEAMBOAT'' and the face value ''200 DOLLARS''.
Steamboats played a very important role on the Mississippi River. In the 19th century, they provided extensive transportation of passengers and freight up and down the river. This form of transportation continued to operate successfully until the 20th century when it was replaced by the automobile and railroads. Powered by noisy steam engines, the boats had shallow hulls and flat bottoms to make them easier to navigate through the riverbeds. Cargo and passengers' luggage were stored low above the waterline. The luxuriously appointed decks, with hotel-style lounges, ornate chandeliers, orchestra and servants' quarters, were mostly located on the upper decks. Double chimneys rose from the very top to carry away smoke and soot. Although the advent of modern means of transportation doomed the steamboat era, small numbers of these vessels are still used today for tourist excursions as a reminder of the romantic era of American history.

The obverse shows a traditional portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Ian-Rank Broadley with the artist's initials ''IRB'' and the inscriptions ''ELIZABETH II'', ''COOK ISLANDS'' and the year of issue ''2015''

The coin comes in a stylized gift box with a numbered certificate of authenticity in an extremely limited edition of only 25 pieces for the entire world!

Mother of Pearl Series
Coins in this series go through a lengthy and sophisticated production process. The mother-of-pearl is extracted from the shells of the world's largest pearlfish (sea pearl) - Pinctada Maxima, which grow up to 30 cm in diameter. The oysters are farmed on pearl farms in perfectly isolated areas of the oceans off the coasts of Australia, Tahiti, Fiji, Indonesia and the Philippines. Their shells have a very thick inner shell made up of pearl. It takes up to 12 weeks to select the most beautiful pearl shells for the Mother of Pearl series. They are then shaped to the desired form and ultrasonic waves are used to create a motif that is worked out in minute detail. To achieve the individual colouring, the pearl is soaked in a bath with the appropriate colour for a further 5 weeks. The mother-of-pearl core is then inserted into the coin using a complicated technical process.

This product is part of the following product sets: