2027) "Year of the Tiger", United Kingdom (UK): Coin Series titled "the Shēngxiào Collection”: Royal Mint, UK has issued Gold, Silver and Cupro-nickel Coins in eight Variants under its continuing Lunar Year Range: Year of Coin issue: 2021 (with Year of issue inscribed as 2022):
Links to some more posts on the Chinese Lunar calendar/Zodiac signs on this Blog:
The Royal Mint has brought out on 06.09.2021 its latest range of gold and silver Proof-quality collector coins entitled the “Shēngxiào Collection” and which is part of its continuing Lunar Year range.
The Coin Series covers all 12 Lunar zodiac signs which change and revolve every 12 years.
As with the Western Zodiac, those born during specific years are said to have attained very definite attributes associated with the real or mythical animal representing that year.
The Year of the Tiger is also associated with particular elements which change with each cycle and can range from fire, earth, wood, or even gold. This year, the Tiger is associated with water. Incidentally, it has been found that not only can tigers swim, but they seem to enjoy the experience.
2022 is the Year of the Tiger in the Chinese Lunar Calendar - Zodiac Cycle.
How does the Lunar Calendar or Chinese Zodiac Cycle work?
I consulted some of the books which have been kept in my personal library and got acquainted with some interesting facts about the Chinese Zodiac/Lunar Calendar:
The exact origins of the 12 animal signs is rather lost in the obscurity of time, but there is no doubt that they originated in China.
In terms of the Chinese astrological "history", the 12 animals are of a rather recent introduction - for it seems that in the 2nd Century BC, Ssu Ma Chi'en (163-85 BC), who was the grand astrologer to Emperor Wu Ti, wrote the Shi Chi or "historical record" up to that time. In this book, there is no "Zodiac" or mention of the 12 animals.
Originally, the 12 year cycle that it takes the planet Jupiter to complete one orbit of the Sun was believed to have defined the earlier calendars. The Chinese still call this cycle "The Great Year" and each month corresponds to one of our own years.
By the 10th Century AD, however, after Buddhism had been established in china, Calendar Almanacs, such as those written by Tibetan monks in exile in the "Caves of the Thousand Buddhas" monastery in the remote reaches of North-western China, depicting the 12 animals, came into existence.
The legend of the Conference of Animals called by the Buddha and naming of the 12 year cycle after 12 animals for the Chinese Lunar Calendar:
According to a legend, it was the Buddha (583-463 BC), who created the 12-animal cycle. He is believed to have invited all the animals in the land to hold a conference together. The Buddha was not surprised, as in his wisdom, he knew that some of the animals were friendly towards others, while others were inimical enemies.
To encourage attendance, he decided to name the years after the first twelve animals, in order of their arrival.
An invitation from the Buddha was hard to resist, and when they heard the news, all the animals set off at once, each determined to be the first to arrive.
Tiger, because of his energy and speed, at first took the lead. Soon, though, he began to tire and the early lead that he had achieved over his next rival Ox, who may have been slow, but had great stamina, soon dissipated. Ox reached the Buddha ahead of Tiger and prepared to bow down low to receive his honour.
But, what the sturdy Ox did not know was that clever Rat had sneaked a ride on his tail !! Just before Ox's nose touched the floor at the Buddha's feet, nimble and swift Rat ran up the Ox's tail, along his back and jumped off his nose, thus winning the race to be the first to bow before the Buddha. So Rat (or "Tze" is its Chinese name"), became the first animal in the Chinese Lunar Calendar/Zodiac, followed by a rather resentful Ox ("Chou").
Tiger ("Yin"), Rabbit ("Mao"), Dragon ("Chen"), Snake ("Si"), Horse ("Wu"), Goat ("Wei"), Monkey ("Shen"), Rooster ("You"), Dog ("Xu") and Pig ("Hu"), all followed, and in that order, paid homage to the Buddha and were each honoured with a year.
Interestingly, Dragon is the only mythical beast in the Chinese Circle of Zodiacal animals.
According to the Lunar or Chinese Zodiac, each year is assigned to the above-referred animals, in accordance to a 12-year cycle.
The lunar calendar is 12 months long, with each month corresponding roughly to one cycle of the Moon's movement - from a new moon, through to a full Moon and back to a new Moon. The lunar calendar is also known as the agricultural calendar as it divides the year into seasons. Agriculture was the principal economy of ancient China. Even today, the lunar calendar still has great significance for the Chinese people, who use it to set the luckiest dates for traditional events and activities, such as weddings, funerals, launching new ventures and moving to a new house.
The next year is the "Year of the Tiger" (2022):
Originally, the 12 year cycle that it takes the planet Jupiter to complete one orbit of the Sun was believed to have defined the earlier calendars. The Chinese still call this cycle "The Great Year" and each month corresponds to one of our own years.
By the 10th Century AD, however, after Buddhism had been established in china, Calendar Almanacs, such as those written by Tibetan monks in exile in the "Caves of the Thousand Buddhas" monastery in the remote reaches of North-western China, depicting the 12 animals, came into existence.
The legend of the Conference of Animals called by the Buddha and naming of the 12 year cycle after 12 animals for the Chinese Lunar Calendar:
According to a legend, it was the Buddha (583-463 BC), who created the 12-animal cycle. He is believed to have invited all the animals in the land to hold a conference together. The Buddha was not surprised, as in his wisdom, he knew that some of the animals were friendly towards others, while others were inimical enemies.
To encourage attendance, he decided to name the years after the first twelve animals, in order of their arrival.
An invitation from the Buddha was hard to resist, and when they heard the news, all the animals set off at once, each determined to be the first to arrive.
Tiger, because of his energy and speed, at first took the lead. Soon, though, he began to tire and the early lead that he had achieved over his next rival Ox, who may have been slow, but had great stamina, soon dissipated. Ox reached the Buddha ahead of Tiger and prepared to bow down low to receive his honour.
But, what the sturdy Ox did not know was that clever Rat had sneaked a ride on his tail !! Just before Ox's nose touched the floor at the Buddha's feet, nimble and swift Rat ran up the Ox's tail, along his back and jumped off his nose, thus winning the race to be the first to bow before the Buddha. So Rat (or "Tze" is its Chinese name"), became the first animal in the Chinese Lunar Calendar/Zodiac, followed by a rather resentful Ox ("Chou").
Tiger ("Yin"), Rabbit ("Mao"), Dragon ("Chen"), Snake ("Si"), Horse ("Wu"), Goat ("Wei"), Monkey ("Shen"), Rooster ("You"), Dog ("Xu") and Pig ("Hu"), all followed, and in that order, paid homage to the Buddha and were each honoured with a year.
Interestingly, Dragon is the only mythical beast in the Chinese Circle of Zodiacal animals.
According to the Lunar or Chinese Zodiac, each year is assigned to the above-referred animals, in accordance to a 12-year cycle.
The lunar calendar is 12 months long, with each month corresponding roughly to one cycle of the Moon's movement - from a new moon, through to a full Moon and back to a new Moon. The lunar calendar is also known as the agricultural calendar as it divides the year into seasons. Agriculture was the principal economy of ancient China. Even today, the lunar calendar still has great significance for the Chinese people, who use it to set the luckiest dates for traditional events and activities, such as weddings, funerals, launching new ventures and moving to a new house.
Starting from the 1st February 2022 and ending on the 31st January 2023, the most recent years of the Tiger include 2022, 2010, 1998, 1986, 1974, 1962, 1950, and 1938.
The next year is the "Year of the Tiger" (2022):
The Header/Banner showing the Reverses of the Gold, Silver and Cupro-nickel Coins against a background image of a tiger. The Banner is titled - "LUNAR YEAR OF THE TIGER"
Those born during the Year of the Tiger, their personality is said to be strong-willed. Once they make up their minds, they will not change it easily and will never regret what they have said in terms of speaking their minds. They are said to be born with stateliness and confidence, so they always impress people with an image of power and authority.
The Reverses of the Gold, Silver and Cupro-nickel Coins - designed by David Lawrence - present a motif of a tiger face moving towards the viewer.
There is a symbol on the tiger's forehead. The symbol represents a pictogram or symbol for “king” (王) and can be found within the markings on the tiger’s head.
Above the primary design is the text "YEAR OF THE TIGER 2022" (along the upper periphery).
The Obverses of the Gold, Silver and Cupro-nickel Coins depicts an effigy of Queen Elizabeth II designed by Jody Clark, whose initials "JC" appear below the Queen's neck. Included within the legend on the outer periphery is the denomination of the coin from 2 POUNDS to 1000 POUNDS.
The Coin Variants:
The 2022-dated Lunar Year range is available in a variety of eight different versions - from base metal cupro-nickel struck to Brilliant Uncirculated quality to gold and silver ounce, five, 10, and one-kilo sized pieces.
The gold variants consist of quarter, one, and five-ounce pieces along with one-kilo coins struck to Proof quality. Each of the precious metal examples is specially encapsulated and presented in a custom case to accommodate its specific size and is accompanied by a numbered certificate of authenticity and booklet detailing the background information about the Year of the Tiger.
The specifications of the eight Coin Variants are:
1) 1,000 Pounds Gold Coin variant:
Country of issue: United Kingdom (UK); Year: 2021 (with the year inscribed as 2022); Coin Series Theme: "Shengxiao Collection - a part of the Lunar Year Range"; Coin Theme: "Year of the Tiger"; Metal Composition: .9999 Fineness Gold (Au); Weight: 1,005 grams (One Kilo); Diameter/Size: 100.0 mm; Coin Quality: Proof; Minted By: Royal Mint, UK; Mintage: 10 pieces; Presentation Box/Case: Yes; Certificate of Authenticity (COA): Yes, numbered; Encapsulated: Yes.
2) 500 Pounds Gold Coin variant:
Country of issue: United Kingdom (UK); Year: 2021 (with the year inscribed as 2022); Coin Series Theme: "Shengxiao Collection - a part of the Lunar Year Range"; Coin Theme: "Year of the Tiger"; Metal Composition: .9999 Fineness Gold (Au); Weight: 156.29 grams; Diameter/Size: 50.0 mm; Coin Quality: Proof; Minted By: Royal Mint, UK; Mintage: 128 pieces; Presentation Box/Case: Yes; Certificate of Authenticity (COA): Yes, numbered; Encapsulated: Yes.
3) 100 Pounds Gold Coin variant:
Country of issue: United Kingdom (UK); Year: 2021 (with the year inscribed as 2022); Coin Series Theme: "Shengxiao Collection - a part of the Lunar Year Range"; Coin Theme: "Year of the Tiger"; Metal Composition: .9999 Fineness Gold (Au); Weight: 31.2 grams; Diameter/Size: 23.69 mm; Coin Quality: Proof; Minted By: Royal Mint, UK; Mintage: 898 pieces; Presentation Box/Case: Yes; Certificate of Authenticity (COA): Yes, numbered; Encapsulated: Yes.
4) 25 Pounds Gold Coin variant:
Country of issue: United Kingdom (UK); Year: 2021 (with the year inscribed as 2022); Coin Series Theme: "Shengxiao Collection - a part of the Lunar Year Range"; Coin Theme: "Year of the Tiger"; Metal Composition: .9999 Fineness Gold (Au); Weight: 7.8grams; Diameter/Size: 22.0 mm; Coin Quality: Proof; Minted By: Royal Mint, UK; Mintage: 398 pieces; Presentation Box/Case: Yes; Certificate of Authenticity (COA): Yes, numbered; Encapsulated: Yes.
5) 500 Pounds Silver Coin variant:
Country of issue: United Kingdom (UK); Year: 2021 (with the year inscribed as 2022); Coin Series Theme: "Shengxiao Collection - a part of the Lunar Year Range"; Coin Theme: "Year of the Tiger"; Metal Composition: .999 Fineness Silver (Ag); Weight: 1,005 grams (Kilo); Diameter/Size: 100.0 mm; Coin Quality: Proof; Minted By: Royal Mint, UK; Mintage: 38 pieces; Presentation Box/Case: Yes; Certificate of Authenticity (COA): Yes, numbered; Encapsulated: Yes.
6) 10 Pounds Silver Coin variant:
Country of issue: United Kingdom (UK); Year: 2021 (with the year inscribed as 2022); Coin Series Theme: "Shengxiao Collection - a part of the Lunar Year Range"; Coin Theme: "Year of the Tiger"; Metal Composition: .999 Fineness Silver (Ag); Weight: 156.3 grams; Diameter/Size: 65.0 mm; Coin Quality: Proof; Minted By: Royal Mint, UK; Mintage: 228 pieces; Presentation Box/Case: Yes; Certificate of Authenticity (COA): Yes, numbered; Encapsulated: Yes.
7) 2 Pounds Silver Coin variant:
Country of issue: United Kingdom (UK); Year: 2021 (with the year inscribed as 2022); Coin Series Theme: "Shengxiao Collection - a part of the Lunar Year Range"; Coin Theme: "Year of the Tiger"; Metal Composition: .999 Fineness Silver (Ag); Weight: 31.2 grams; Diameter/Size: 38.6 mm; Coin Quality: Proof; Minted By: Royal Mint, UK; Mintage: 3998 pieces; Presentation Box/Case: Yes; Certificate of Authenticity (COA): Yes, numbered; Encapsulated: Yes.
8) 5 Pounds Cupro-nickel Coin variant:
Country of issue: United Kingdom (UK); Year: 2021 (with the year inscribed as 2022); Coin Series Theme: "Shengxiao Collection - a part of the Lunar Year Range"; Coin Theme: "Year of the Tiger"; Metal Composition: Cupro-nickel; Weight: 28.2 grams; Diameter/Size: 38.6 mm; Coin Quality: Brilliant Uncirculated (BU); Minted By: Royal Mint, UK; Mintage: 3998 pieces.
Links: Postage Stamps from the British Isles:
Posts on the UK Coins and Stamps:
"Tales of the Earth Coin Series": The Second Dinosaurs Collector Coin Series:
Myths & Legends Coin Series:
"The Queen's Beasts" Coin Series, UK issues:
"Tales of the Earth - Dinosauria" Coin Series, UK issues:
2) Iguanodon, United Kingdom: Second Coin in a three Coin 50 Pence Coin Series titled "Tales of the Earth - Dinosauria", brought out by the Royal Mint, UK in five Variants - Gold, Silver (x2 Coins) and Cupro-nickel (x 2 Coins): Year of Coin issue: 2020
3) Hylaeosaurus, United Kingdom: Third and final Coin in a three Coin 50 Pence Coin Series titled "Tales of the Earth - Dinosauria", brought out by the Royal Mint, UK in five variants - Gold, Silver (x 2 coins) and Cupro-nickel (x 2 Coins): Date of coin issue: 01.06.2020
3) Hylaeosaurus, United Kingdom: Third and final Coin in a three Coin 50 Pence Coin Series titled "Tales of the Earth - Dinosauria", brought out by the Royal Mint, UK in five variants - Gold, Silver (x 2 coins) and Cupro-nickel (x 2 Coins): Date of coin issue: 01.06.2020
Links to some other interesting posts from the British Isles and British Overseas Territories/Dependencies:
Central Bank of Ireland issues:
Bank of Ireland issues:
Northern Ireland Bank issues:
Bank of England Banknotes:
Inspirations from Scottish History (Clydesdale Bank Banknotes):
Banknotes from Royal Bank of Scotland:
British Crown Dependencies/Overseas Territories:
The Queen's Beasts Coin Series, UK issues:
Gold Coins:
Silver Coins:
British India Coinage:
Other British Royalty:
British Coinage:
Commemorative British Coinage:
The Brixton Pound:
The "Pilgrim Voyage of the Mayflower":
Links: Crypto-Currency Stamps & Coin Posts:
British Antarctic Territory (BAT) Related Links on this Blog:
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