As the actual year of celebration gets underway in 2016 (Star Trek: the Original Series debuted in 1966), there is a renewed focus on the Perth Mint’s coins and hope for additional proof specimens celebrating one of the world’s most beloved science-fiction franchises.
Birth of Star Trek
Gene Roddenberry first created the concept of Star Trek in the early 1960s. His original concept and script were picked up for American television and aired for the first time in 1966. Stars of what became known as The Original Series included William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk and Leonard Nimoy as Spock.
Although younger generations that have more recently taken a liking to Star Trek probably don’t realize this, The Original Series was only on the air from 1966 to 1969. The franchise did not gain greater notoriety until The Original Series went into syndication as reruns, which helped build a cult following for the show and generate interest in future projects.
On the back of the popularity of The Original Series, Roddenberry’s small franchise eventually began to grow into a juggernaut. There was a 10-year gap in the franchise’s presence in media, with only a short-lived release of The Animated Series in 1974 and 1975 airing on television.
Beginning in 1979, new momentum would carry Star Trek to heights it had never seen before. From 1979’s release of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, the 1980s and 1990s would see the release of 8 feature films in the Star Trek franchise, as well as the birth of 4 new television series: The Next Generation (1987-1994), Deep Space Nine (1993-1999), Voyager (1995-2001), and Enterprise (2001-2005). It is the latter group of television series that have been celebrated by the Perth Mint.
Perth Mint Star Trek Proof Silver Coins
Beginning in 2015, Australia’s Perth Mint began releasing what would grow to become a 10-coin series of proof silver coins honoring the 50th anniversary of Star Trek. The Perth Mint developed a very detailed and concise series of coins that were released in the order of the television series the designs represented.
There was a strict theme to each of the coins. The Perth Mint’s series of Star Trek-themed coins featured the leading captain of a starship on one coin, that individual captain’s starship on a second coin, and then a two-coin set released that featured both of the coins.
Over the course of the series, the Perth Mint maintained continuity in the design concepts, mintage, and packaging of the Star Trek proof silver coins. The following were some of the common features shared by all coins in the series:
- Proof quality .999 pure silver
- Legal tender in Tuvalu, with a $1 face value
- Officially licensed product of Star Trek
- Individual coins had an issue limit of 5,000
- An additional 1,500 coins were struck in every design and included in the 2-coin sets.
- All coins shipped in themed presentation packaging, with a numbered Certificate of Authenticity available.
On top of these commonalities, all Perth Mint Star Trek Proof Silver coins featured brilliant, colorized designs for the portrait of the captains as well as the starship or its background universe. All coins had the same obverse design, that of Queen Elizabeth II by Ian Rank-Broadley.
Order of Release and Design Overview
The Perth Mint, as mentioned above, released the captains and starship coins to coincide with their appearance in the franchise’s history. Up first was the release of the coins representing Star Trek: The Original Series:
- Captain James T. Kirk
- S.S. Enterprise
Following the release of these first two coins, which are sold out both with the Perth Mint and JM Bullion, the mint continued with its release schedule following the release history of Star Trek television series. This included the following shows and coins:
- The Next Generation
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard
- S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D
- Deep Space Nine
- Captain Benjamin Sisko
- Deep Space Nine (space station)
- Voyager
- Captain Kathryn Janeway
- S.S. Voyager NCC-7456
- Enterprise
- Captain Jonathan Archer
- Enterprise NX-01
The lone exception to this series was the additional release of an 11th coin, which in all fairness could not have been left out without Trekkies everywhere expressing disdain. The Perth Mint also struck and released a Star Trek: The Original Series Spock proof silver coin.
Like all the other coins in the series, the Spock coin featured a colorized portrait of the actor who played the character in the series (in this case, Leonard Nimoy), and had a limited mintage of 5,000 coins in total.
The Franchise Carries On
Entering 2016, Star Trek is enjoying renewed relevance in pop culture. A new feature film was released in 2009, entitled Star Trek. A follow-up film arrived in 2013, Star Trek: Into Darkness. Both films were met with huge box office success, and a third film (Star Trek: Beyond) is slated for release in 2016.
The Perth Mint’s coin program was immensely successful, and while The Original Series coins are sold out, there are still proof coins from the remainder of the Australian Star Trek series available. Feel free to browse the JM Bullion Star Trek catalog, and keep an eye out for future releases of Star Trek coins this year to mark the 50th anniversary. Other mints have a history of following in the Perth Mint’s footsteps (Lunar coins are a great example), so be on the lookout!