500 Francs Mausoleum of Maussollos

Rwanda has no historical connection to Maussollos or the Halicarnassus tomb that gave mausoleums their name — this is a bullion and collector series issued under the "Seven Wonders of the Ancient World" program, a franchise-style arrangement common among small nations that license their minting authority to European distributors, primarily Austrian, for the international collector market. The niobium centre, processed at the Austrian Mint, produces the coin's characteristic blue coloration through anodization.