Catalog
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| Issuer | Republic of Palau |
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| Year | 2008 |
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| Orientation | Medal alignment ↑↑ |
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| Obverse description | Central field depicts a finely detailed allegorical group comprising Neptune, the god of the sea, seated and wearing a crown, holding a trident aloft in his right hand, accompanied by two mermaids resting against him amid stylized ocean waves. The composition is rendered in high relief within a beaded border. The curved legend REPUBLIC OF PALAU arcs along the upper periphery, with the date 2008 inscribed to the right, and the denomination 5$ appears in the lower field. |
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| Reverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
Palau has issued wildlife-themed silver pieces since the mid-1990s, largely targeting the collector market rather than domestic circulation — the republic's own currency in everyday use is the U.S. dollar. The grey reef shark series emerged during a period when Pacific island nations were aggressively competing for a share of the numismatic novelty market, with Palau's government licensing production to external minting facilities rather than operating its own.
Palau's waters fall within Micronesia's reef systems, where grey reef shark populations have faced documented pressure from finning operations — which lends the subject matter a conservation angle that was almost certainly deliberate.