2014 Niue 1 oz Silver $2 Disney Pluto PF-69 NGC

Limited Mintage of 10,000 globally.

This is part of the third release of coins in a two year Disney series that the New Zealand Mint is producing featuring the most popular Disney personalities. Previously in the series was the Donald Duck 80th anniversary Coin.

The Coin:
The obverse features the Ian Rank-Broadley effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, with her name and the legal tender value of Niue TWO DOLLARS along the edge. The reverse depicts Pluto sitting down, cheerfully waiting for his next adventure. A strip of film floats in the background, appropriately framing the character that grew from a tracker dog to Mickey Mouse’s pet. The coin is presented in a Perspex case allowing 360 degree presentation, and a Certificate of Authenticity is displayed on top of the case.

The Story:
Pluto is an iconic cartoon character, who first appeared in Disney’s 1930 release The Chain Gang. His nature and personality as a tracker dog in this early film was quite different to the friendly pup we know today. However, six months later this all changed as Pluto was presented as Mickey’s pet, forging the famous friendship between these characters. Modeled on the English Pointer breed, Pluto is a mustard-colored, medium-sized dog with black ears. His cheerful and adventurous temperament has endeared him to many. As he does not speak, Pluto’s performance relies on physical humor. This has made him a pioneering figure in character animation, by expressing personality through movement, facial expressions and vocalization. Cast in his own television series in 1937, Pluto went on to appear in 48 cartoons over the following decades. One of these, Lend a Paw, won an ACADEMY AWARD ® in 1942.

New Zealand Mint:
The New Zealand Mint is a privately owned company in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the only privately owned mint in New Zealand, purchasing refined Gold from international sources to produce coins. They have established their reputation over the past four decades for their high quality design as exhibited by their innovative commemorative Gold and Silver bullion products. The only precious metal mint in New Zealand, the mint uses the tag-line “Minters of the South Pacific” and produces collector and bullion coins for a number of pacific nations, including Fiji, the Cook Islands, Niue and Tuvalu.