Today we're going to look at a silver coin from the last European dictatorship. The Republic of Belarus. They do release collectors coins from time to time, but mostly with gems. This is one of the few silver coins with animals and without gems. The 2002 brown bear.
Obverse
The obverse shows a brown bear family walking through a forest. One thing which I've noticed is the meticulous mirror finish. It wasn't sold as a proof coin, so I was pretty surprised to find this kind of finish. After doing some research, I noticed that especially on the US market this coin is sold as "ultra cameo proof" coin. Not sure what's up with the coin. Anyway, I like bears, so the proof finish is a nice bonus.
Reverse
The reverse still shows the strong influence of the countries Soviet past. The coat of arms of Belarus is very similar to the soviet union's coat of arms. Around the coat of arms are the countries name "Republic of Belarus" and at the bottom the denomination of 20 rubles.Conclusion
One thing which I is sad about the Belarus Mint is that the only way to get their coins is to travel to Belarus. You can't have them delivered. Therefore you have to hope that people buy them and take them out of the country. That results in a slow trickle of coins from the country. It's a shame that such beautiful coins rarely leave their country. Just like the 2002 brown bear.
Do you own coins from the Republic of Belarus? If yes, which?
Elly likes to show beautiful coins, and she's really taken a liking to this brownbear.