10 Dollars Papal Conclave

Liberia has issued commemorative silver in volume since the 1990s, contracting production to various European and Asian mints and targeting the thematic collector market rather than any domestic monetary function. The 2005 conclave issue followed the death of John Paul II in April of that year and the subsequent election of Joseph Ratzinger as Benedict XVI — the first papal transition in twenty-six years, and the first to unfold under full global media coverage.

The partial gilding technique used here was common to this wave of Liberian issues, applied selectively by the contracted mint rather than at any Liberian facility.