2016 Australia Silver $5 Color Domed Northern Sky Ursa Major Prf

Coin Highlights:

• Contains 1 oz of .999 fine Silver.
• Comes in a presentation box with a mint-issued certificate of authenticity.
• Mintage of only 5,000 coins.
• Concave design adds depth to the constellation.
• Obverse: The Ian Rank-Broadley effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II along with the date.
• Reverse: Features the Ursa Major constellation as seen from the northern hemisphere against a background of purple, pink and orange. Designed by B. King.
• Sovereign coin backed by the Australian government.

The Royal Australian Mint has once again produced a coin enjoyed by all. Add the $5 Australian Colored Northern Sky Ursa Major Domed Silver Coins to your cart today!

Shop all Royal Australian Mint Silver Domed coins, including the 2019 release of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing Domed coins.

Where previously the center of the coin was completely filled with a really brightly colored depiction of the constellation, Cassiopeia had more muted colors and a clean struck crescent tree-line to enhance the sense of realism which is less clinical than the design previously employed. Some preferred it, some didn’t but both are great designs. The second coin features Ursa Major, also called the Great Bear. It’s the third largest of the 88 modern constellations and is home to I Zwicky 18, the youngest known galaxy in the visible universe.

Those who gaze at the stars in the northern hemisphere are fortunate to enjoy the sight of one of the world’s most famous constellations year-round. Ursa Major, Latin for "the greater she-bear", has been a key feature of astronomy, navigation and folklore since its declaration by Ptolemy in the second century.

The constellation, whose seven most prominent stars are commonly known as the "Big Dipper", has captured the imagination of many around the world, as evidenced through its many myths. The Micmac and Iroquois tribes of North America share tales of seven hunters whose pursuit of the bear caused her to spray her blood to turn the autumn leaves red. Romans believed the maiden Callisto was transformed into a bear by the goddess Juno, jealous of the attention that her husband Jupiter gave the maiden. Greeks believed Hera and Zeus were the feuding couple surrounding Callisto’s transformation.