CIT Coin Invest AG (Lichtenstein)

20 dollars

93,3 g

50 mm

Silver 999°

888 pcs

Antique Finish, smartminting®, ultra high relief on both sides, partly gilded

CIT Coin Invest AG (Lichtenstein)

B.H. Mayer (Germany)

One side features future means of transportation in steampunk style: on the right, the foreground is dominated by a man depicted from behind wearing a jet pack; he is looking at a locomotive, a small dog, a man on a penny-farthing and a man in a hang-glider; in the background: an armillary sphere and an aerial tramway. The jet pack and the front part of the locomotive are highlighted by gilding. The jet pack shows the year 2021.

The other side depicts a circular construction of various gearwheels and other functional elements; off-centered is a circular area with the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II to the right, around it her title, the name of the country and the denomination; along the edge a broad ribbon with the name of the series STEAMPUNK.

CIT dedicates the second issue of the Steampunk series to the jet pack. Like its predecessor, the coin impresses with an ultra-high relief in antique finish, with highlights that were applied by means of exquisite gilding. This process requires the highest precision of craftsmanship and is extremely elaborate: traditional craftsmanship combined with state-of-the-art minting technology – you could call that steampunk too.

The French author Jules Verne is probably the most important point of reference for steampunk culture. He is considered the most famous representative of 19th-century science fiction literature. Many of his novels deal with journeys – to the moon, to the center of the earth or around the world. It is therefore quite appropriate that CIT hid three allusions to the author in the design of the Jet Pack issue: the author’s first name can be read on the left shoulder pad of the central figure; his portrait is depicted on the left of the locomotive; the word NEMO, representing one of Jules Verne’s heroes, is depicted on the control panel of the jet pack.