500 Won Fairy of Mount Kumgang

Issued in 1989 at a moment when North Korea was aggressively courting hard currency through foreign coin programs, this piece was produced almost entirely for export — bought by Western collectors who would never legally visit the country depicted. The Central Bank engaged several overseas minting and distribution intermediaries during this period, and many DPRK commemoratives from these years were struck outside the country entirely, though attribution of specific pieces to specific facilities remains difficult.

Mount Kumgang, on the country's eastern coast, had been closed to outsiders for decades by the time this was minted. South Korean tourists wouldn't gain access until the Hyundai-brokered tour program launched in 1998.