Maui and the Goddess of Fire Maori Art Silver Coin Set 2019 Proof

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Māui and the Goddess of Fire - 2019

An exclusive set of two silver coins issued by the Bank of New Zealand for 2019 and minted in premium proof quality, each weighing 1 troy ounce of pure 99.9% silver, is dedicated to Maori mythology and the story - How Māui won fire for the world

The reverse of each coin features one of the key figures of the legend, which are Māui and the goddess of fire, Mahuika. It depicts the part of the story when Māui acquired several fire nails from the goddess, leaving only one on her hand. The flames emanating from both characters' palms and the goddess' fiery hair are gilded. Her skirt is decorated with a triangular pattern, which is also repeated on the box, representing the blazing fire. The background on both coins is decorated with Maori Koru ornaments - symbolism of an unfurling fern leaf and is accompanied by the inscriptions "TAHI TARA" and the face value.
The coins tell the Māori legend of how Māui acquired fire for the world. The demigod Māui was curious to know where the fire came from. So he put out the fire in all the villages and waited to see what would happen. The villagers were horrified and sought the advice of their Ragarita. He advised them that someone should go to the goddess Mahuika and ask her for fire. Māui was glad that his plan worked and offered to go to the goddess on the burnt mountain. Māui was the son of Makeatutara, the god of the underworld, and so he was graciously received by the goddess of fire. By lying to her, he gradually coaxed all her fiery nails out of her. When the goddess found out that Māui had deceived her, she wanted to punish him. In pursuit she threw fire at him, which missed him, but struck the trees, which retained the fire. When Māui returned from his expedition, he was without fire, but he brought dry wood. He showed the villagers how to make a fire by rubbing the wood together.

The obverse of each coin bears a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Ian Rank-Broadley, the inscriptions 'NEW ZEALAND', 'ELIZABETH II', the year of issue '2019' and weight and fineness information.

Both coins are encased in an acrylic frame and presented in a gift box. Each set includes an original certificate of authenticity. The set was issued in a very limited edition of only 500 pieces for the entire world !