2019 South Africa Gold & Silver Protea Nelson Mandela 3-pc Proof Set

Final Year of South Africa’s Protea Series

2019 marks the final year of the South African Mint’s famous Protea Series entitled “The Life and Legend of Nelson Mandela.” Since its debut in 2013, the series has featured designs inspired by a different chapter in the life of Mandela, a revolutionary, philanthropist and former President of South Africa.

This set contains three legal-tender coins struck for the last-year-of-issue 2019 release. Each was struck in gorgeous Proof condition and features a common obverse that depicts Nelson Mandela surrounded by a wreath of King Protea, a flowering plant native to South Africa. Each coin in this set features a distinctive and uplifting design:

• The 1-Rand 15-gram silver coin. Measuring 32.69 mm in diameter, it was minted in 92.5% Sterling silver and features a smiling Mandela as he holds his grandchild. The design is augmented with a paisley pattern inspired by the shirts he loved to wear and an inspiration quote from Mandela that reads, “The spirit of Ubunto — that profound African sense that we are human only through the humanity of other human beings.”
• The 5-Rand Tenth-Ounce Gold Coin. Measuring 16.5 mm in diameter, it was struck in highly pure 99.9% fine gold and displays a geometric pattern along with a portrait of an elderly Mandela along with another of his famous quotes: “It is in your hands to create a better world for all who live in it.”
• The 25-Rand One-Ounce Gold Coin. Measuring 32.69 mm in diameter, it was struck in highly pure 99.9% fine gold and celebrates the year Mandela become the first democratically elected president of a free South Africa as well as its first black president. It shows him in silhouette along with a second portrait and the Union Buildings, along with yet another quote that reads, “Ours is a vision of a just and democratic South Africa in which all its people will enjoy a full and rewarding life.”

Nelson Mandela (1918-2013) was a social rights activist, politician and philanthropist who became South Africa’s first black president from 1994 to 1999. He was arrested in 1962 for his work to end apartheid in South Africa and spent the next 27 years of his life in prison. In 1993, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to dismantle the country’s apartheid system. Today, Mandela is a symbol of inspiration for civil rights advocates throughout the world.

Just 800 of these 2019 South Africa Gold & Silver Protea Nelson Mandela Three-Piece Proof Sets were ever released by the South African Mint and each set comes displayed in its original mint packaging and accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. Don’t miss the final year of this inspiring series!