Silver Investment Coin Ice Age Giants - Giant Deer 1 Oz 2019

Giants of the Ice Age - Giant deer

The 1 Oz (31.1 g) investment silver coin minted by the German mint Leipziger Edelmetallverarbeitung GmbH in 2019 in the purest 99.9% silver purity is part of the Giants of the Ice Age series, which will present eight giants of the Ice Age over four years. The second coin in the series features the Giant Deer (Megaloceros giganteus).

The reverse of the coin depicts a giant deer with impressive antlers against the backdrop of an inhospitable steppe. The coin's motif is complemented by the series name "GIANTS OF THE ICE AGE", weight and purity. The outer rim of the coin features silhouettes of all eight animals of the series in order of issue. The motif of the deer is recessed and accentuated by the polished design, while the silhouettes of the other animals rise above the surface of the coin. The year of issue is indicated at the bottom.

The obverse depicts the national emblem of the Republic of Ghana, while the lower part of the coin bears the inscription 'REPUBLIC OF GHANA' and the denomination.

The coin comes in a plastic capsule with a mintage of 15,000 pieces for the whole world!

The giant deer inhabited the vast steppe areas of Eurasia 400,000 - 7,700 years ago. With a height of 2 metres at the withers, a length of 3 metres and an antler spread of up to 3.5 metres, it is the largest known species in the deer family. Its antlers did not allow it to move in heavily wooded areas and it therefore stayed on the steppe plains, where it lived a solitary lifestyle. The impressive antlers could weigh up to 40 kg and the males probably shed them every year. Studies have shown that the size of the antlers was commensurate with the massiveness of the animal and did not account for its extinction. The location on the male's skull and the direction of growth was not very suitable for fighting, but served the male to show it off to the female and intimidate other males. The cause of the extinction of this species has not been fully confirmed. It is likely that multiple factors were involved, such as changes in climate and growing cycles, lack of food and subsequent reduction in female fecundity, the presence of a pathogen, and hunting by humans.
The red deer was described thanks to numerous skeletal remains found in the 17th and 18th centuries in lake sediments and peat bogs in Ireland. As a result, it is also known in English-speaking countries as the Irish deer or Irish elk.

This product is part of the following product sets: