The Artemis series from Cook Islands was part of a wave of fractional gold miniatures issued in the late 2000s by Pacific island nations whose mint licensing arrangements — primarily with overseas private mints — generated revenue far exceeding any plausible local monetary need. Cook Islands has long been a vehicle for this trade, its government supplying legal tender status to products designed entirely for the collector and investor markets rather than circulation.
The Artemis series from Cook Islands was part of a wave of fractional gold miniatures issued in the late 2000s by Pacific island nations whose mint licensing arrangements — primarily with overseas private mints — generated revenue far exceeding any plausible local monetary need. Cook Islands has long been a vehicle for this trade, its government supplying legal tender status to products designed entirely for the collector and investor markets rather than circulation.