Somalia Elephant Silver And Gold Coins Anyone?

Btw, I've asked the dealer that if buying 3-5 sets then what price will he goes for: $1000 shipped if buying 5 sets.
A group buy is looking good to me.....

Thanks yellow, that made sense (5K pure BU coin).

bekiz- $65-70 USD is a fair price to pay for a BU coin in perfect condition. If you need a recommendation for a reputable seller let me know.

The anniversary/jubilee set has a mintage of 500.

To get a good idea of the difference between the first 4 years and the rest check out ebay and there's a pick of the set. There's definitely a difference albeit a subtle one.

When the set first came out the question of reminting was brought up. Two dealers that specialize in the Somalia series quizzed their sources at the mint. In addition, I emailed the main distributor for the mint and asked the reminting question. All responses were negative- no reminting. They all stated the coins came from pre-existing stock.

I follow the market fairly close and I feel if there was reminting there would be an influx of the older coins in the market place. I have not seen this. Taking everything into consideration I have come to the conclusion, as have the dealers, that there is no reminting taking place.

Based upon what I have learned along with others on this thread in regards to mintage numbers I see no change in the population numbers for the older low mintage coins.

My next challenge is to learn the mintages of the Zambia Wildlife series which is the true precursor of the Somalia series. The Zambia series ran between 1999 and 2003, and were minted by the Bavarian State Mint the same mint that currently produces the Somalia coins. The Zambia series has proof and matte finish BU coins for each year. Colored and gilded coins were produced along with a proof set containing fractionals. The Zambia coins are even rarer then the older Somalia coins and finding them in excellent condition is difficult.

The Somalia Series has really grown a great deal in popularity which is a fantastic thing. It's a relatively easy series to collect (at least you don't have to be a millionaire)or if you're just learning about the series a collector can get their feet wet for very little money. I have several of the older coins but one of my top 3 favorites from the series is the 2013. And if you really like it you can by just one or a whole roll. Want a change from the standard BU silver coin pick up a colored or gilded coin maybe a privy coin and if those aren't to your liking try a kilo coin or a high relief. The high relief coins are incredible. If you're a gold man that's OK to. You'll have a fine selection to choose from if that's to your liking.

silverleaf you can still find deals on the Zambia coins. They are becoming fewer and farther between but with some fortitude and patience you can still find them

Thanks everyone for the info. This is a great post for newbies. :)

Yellow, if you can refer some reputable dealers, I am located in Canada so CAN or US dealers are preferred. I'd very much like to track down a 2004 and 2005 for a decent price.

Yellow just mentioned one of my FAVORITE sets released thus far, the day and night set.

God, I was not into color that much until the Somalia elephants but NOW, getting this set, this has got to be the BEST of the colored elephant coins.

If you guys dont have it, I feel this is a MUST own piece for your collection, the Day and Night set.

The high relief coins are very nice in hand.

I wasn't into colored or gilded coins before but once I purchased a couple I have an appreciation. The Germans do them quite well. Most years the entire scene is colored while some years the background isn't colored. With the gilded coins typically the elephants and the sun are gilded. This is quite striking for most years particularly 2004 but the 2012 is a bit lacking due to the fact the elephants are small and there's no sun.

For some years there's no sales of either colored or gilded listed on ebay nor have I seen them for sale. Making the assumption that they were minted in equal number for each year it's a mystery to me why I haven't seen any. If anyone can shed some light on this please do.