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Sterling Silver 3D Coin - Rainbow Lorikeet - Mintage: 2,500 (2015)
2015 Colorized Proof Silver World of Parrots: Rainbow Lorikeet in NGC PF70 UC Early Releases
This 2015 Cook Islands Colorized Proof Rainbow Lorikeet is part of the country’s World of Parrots Series. The coin received a perfect grade of PF70 Ultra Cameo from the Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC), and also received the designation of being among the early releases. The coin measures 38.61 mm in diameter and has .59 Troy oz. of silver at a purity of .925. It was struck at the Mayer Mint in Pforzheim, Germany. The piece would fit nicely into any collection of colorized coins, as well as those collections that focus on images of animals.
Design of this 2015 Cook Islands Colorized Proof Rainbow Lorikeet
The obverse of this 2015 Cook Islands Colorized Proof Rainbow Lorikeet features a three dimensional image of two rainbow lorikeets, one in flight and the other perched upon a tree at the left. The one in flight it directed toward the upper right, while the other one has its head lowered. The birds have green bodies, wings, and tails, with blue heads and reddish beaks. Some of the trees in the lower left are colorizes, though there are more trees in the background that are not. An inscription on the left identifies the coin as being part of the “WORLD OF PARROTS” series, while one in the upper right identifies the specific coin by the birds portrayed on it, reading, “RAINBOW LORIKEET.” Under that inscription is the Latin name of the bird, “TRICHOGLOSSUS HAEMATODUS.”
The obverse bears the same effigy of Queen Elizabeth II that is used on the coinage of several other countries. The aging Queen faces to the right side of the coin. She wears a tiara atop her head. Below that tiara is her curly hair, which is portrayed in fine detail and falls low enough to cover half of her hear, which has an earring. Under her neck are the initials of the man who designed the image, “IRB” (Ian Rank-Broadley). Three inscriptions run along the rim of the coin. In the upper left, the Queen is identified with the inscription “ELIZABETH II.” In the upper right is the name of the country that issued the coin, “COOK ISLANDS.” The inscription at the bottom bears the coin’s face value, “5 DOLLARS.”