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2 Dollars - Charles III Tarantula Hawk
| Issuer | Niue |
|---|---|
| Year | 2025 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Engraver(s) | JC |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | A highly detailed, naturalistically rendered tarantula hawk wasp (Pepsis species) dominates the field in dynamic three-quarter view, its jet-black body depicted in sculpted high relief with vivid color application to the distinctive amber-orange wings. The insect's legs are splayed as if in motion, with its stinger visible at the abdomen. The background features an antiqued rocky desert canyon landscape in low relief. A horizontal banner in the lower field carries the bold inscriptions KINGS OF STING! above TARANTULA HAWK in smaller lettering. |
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| Additional information |
Niue has operated as a reliable vehicle for novelty bullion issues since the 1990s, licensing its monetary authority to international minting programs with little connection to the island's roughly 1,500 residents. This piece belongs to that well-established commercial pipeline — a collectible silver round dressed in legal tender clothing, with Niue's $2 face value functioning purely as a minting formality.
The tarantula hawk, a parasitic wasp of the genus Pepsis, earns its name by hunting tarantulas as a living incubator for its larvae. Its sting is ranked among the most painful of any insect on Schmidt's Sting Pain Index.