1996 1/2 oz China Gold Panda 50 Yuan Small Date NGC UNC Details

1996 1/2 oz China Gold Panda 50 Yuan Small Date NGC UNC Details

Loved by the world over for its adorable panda illustrations, the Chinese Gold Panda is a big hit among investors and collectors because of its annual changing designs. This is what makes the panda series more interesting to collectors. This year is coveted by many because it has a mintage of only 13,849. The obverse side of the 1996 Chinese Gold Panda features a panda perched on a tree, along with the denomination (50 Yuan), weight (1/2 oz), and fineness (.999) of the coin, which can be found towards the left side by the panda's face. The Temple of Heaven from the Forbidden City and the year of issue (1996) are found on the coin's reverse side.

The 1996 50 Yuan 1/2 oz. Small Date gold Panda is a Shanghai Mint product. 1996 was a very active year in Chinese numismatics that was greatly influenced by the impending transfer of Hong Kong from British to Chinese rule. There was much speculation and hoarding that took place during this time period. Later, after the speculative fever broke, many coins were melted. The 1996 50 Yuan coins have a modest announced mintage of 13,849, yet only a fraction of these have survived. The 50 Yuan is the scarcest denomination. There are two major varieties of the 1996 gold Pandas: Small Date and Large Date. The two versions are not hard to tell apart; the numerals of the Small Date are clearly smaller than those of the Large Date. The Shanghai-struck 50 Yuan Small Dates are seen more often than the Shenyang-minted 50 Yuan Large Dates. Red spots are quite common among unconserved 1996 gold Pandas. It is unusual to find an original coin that doesn’t have them. The head, body and the tree trunk are the places most likely to show wear or rub.

Like all of our other gold coins, this one is guaranteed to be 100% authentic. Item will be wrapped and packaged safe for delivery.