1 Won North Atlantic Right Whale

North Korea issued a small run of brass wildlife pieces in 2001 under a broader commemorative program that leaned heavily on endangered species — in part a bid for foreign currency from overseas collectors rather than any domestic circulation purpose. The North Atlantic right whale, hunted to commercial extinction by the early twentieth century, had a global population estimated at under 350 individuals by the time this coin was struck.

The brass variant catalogued as Schön#441b exists alongside a silver version of the same type, suggesting tiered production aimed at different collector markets simultaneously.