Palau – 2018 – 10 Dollars – Totem Pole shaped coin

Description

The highlight of the World Money Fair 2018 in Berlin: 3D Shaped Totem Pole. Ultra high relief using Smartminting technology. Just 499 pieces will be released in pure 2oz silver. Four totem animals are depicted: Thunderbird, Frog, Owl and Killer Whale.

Totem poles are monumental carvings, a type of Northwest Coast art, consisting of poles, posts or pillars, carved with symbols or figures. They are usually made from large trees, mostly western red cedar, by First Nations and indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest coast including northern Northwest Coast Haida, Tlingit, and Tsimshian communities in Southeast Alaska and British Columbia, Kwakwaka’wakw and Nuu-chah-nulth communities in southern British Columbia, and the Coast Salish communities in Washington and British Columbia. The word totem derives from the Algonquian (most likely Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe)) word odoodem, “(his) kinship group”. The carvings may symbolize or commemorate ancestors, cultural beliefs that recount familiar legends, clan lineages, or notable events. The poles may also serve as functional architectural features, welcome signs for village visitors, mortuary vessels for the remains of deceased ancestors, or as a means to publicly ridicule someone. They may embody a historical narrative of significance to the people carving and installing the pole. Given the complexity and symbolic meanings of totem pole carvings, their placement and importance lies in the observer’s knowledge and connection to the meanings of the figures and the culture in which they are embedded.

First ever 3D shaped totem pole coin
Ultra high relief using Smartminting
Special box included
Low mintage