Catalog
5 Cedis Death and the Maiden
| Issuer | Bank of Ghana |
|---|---|
| Year | 2025 |
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| Composition | Gold plated silver (.999) |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | The reverse features a full-colour reproduction of a Symbolist-style painting depicting the allegory of Death and the Maiden. A darkly cloaked, winged figure of Death, carrying a lantern, is seated beside a bed on which a young woman reclines in a flowing red dress, her gaze meeting that of the spectral visitor. The scene is rendered in muted tones contrasted by the vivid crimson of the maiden's gown, evoking the Romantic and Symbolist tradition. The image is set within the arch-top shaped flan, framed by a gold-plated beaded border that follows the contour of the coin's tombstone silhouette. No legend or lettering appears on the reverse. |
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| Additional information |
The "Death and the Maiden" motif has a specific iconographic lineage running from Hans Baldung Grien's early sixteenth-century paintings through Egon Schiele, with the theme variously interpreted as erotic allegory, memento mori, and social critique depending on the century. Ghana's decision to issue it is commercially driven — the Bank of Ghana has aggressively expanded its bullion and collector coin program since the early 2020s, partnering with European distributors targeting the numismatic gift market rather than domestic circulation.
Gold-plated .999 silver at one troy ounce is the workhorse format of the modern collector coin industry, and 2025 output from this program runs into the tens of thousands of units.