The maple leaf is one of the most recognized symbols of Canada around the world. Now, Canada’s Maple Leaf $5 coin is getting a facelift from Merrick Mint, making it all the more appealing!

This 2002 Gold Maple Leaf Hologram coin features detailed holographic images in colors reminiscent of fall leaves; the coin comes in silver, too. On the front, the silhouette of Queen Elizabeth II appears in carefully applied hologram technology, with the background painted black, creating a pleasant contrast.

On the reverse of the coin, the maple leaf stands out in hologram 3D, with the veins of the leaves carefully detailed. The leaf sits in the center of the red and white Canadian flag painted in the background, creating an interesting 3D flag. The coin contains one ounce of pure .999 silver.

The coin is sold with an attractive felt coin jewel case, as well as a Merrick Mint Certificate of Authenticity (not endorsed by the Royal Canadian Mint). Both the gold and silver maple leaf hologram coins sell online for approximately $30. Five coin hologram sets are available, and contain five different weights of coins.

Dig deep in the world of hologram currency, and you’ll find more to it than North American coins and sports collectibles. Other countries have fine specimens that rarely get publicized in the U.S. Take some initiative to find the coins that none of your numismatist buddies will have!

Own a Mystery of the World
The Pacific Ocean commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands has issued a non-circulating coin series entitled “Mysteries of the World.” One of the coins features hologram images of eerie crop circles. The creator of the mysterious geometric formations in farming fields remains unknown, but by owning one of these coins, you’ll own part of the mystery!

Rugby Anyone?
Rugby has grown in popularity around the world, since the first world cup in 1987. The game itself was invented at the Rugby School in 1823. Britain honored its very first hologram coin by celebrating the country’s favorite sport. The Piedfort Silver Proof Edition of the 1999 Two Pounds Rugby World Cup Coin sold out the 10,000 issued very quickly.

The Taj Mahal
Cambodia too has joined the hologram band wagon. In 2005-2006, the country issued a beautiful coin featuring the famous Taj Mahal. On the reverse, a Kathak Dancer shows off her hologram splendor. This dance style mixes Hindu and Muslim moves, and originated in India between 1526 and 1761.

While you may be a fan of commemorative hologram coins, are you aware of the other uses for hologram technology? As laser technology and instruments have developed over the years, the application of holograms has become more affordable, making the market for it virtually limitless.

Holographic packaging materials are affordable, and provide unique options for:

• Laminating films
• Hot and cold stamp foils
• Label materials

Holograms are also used as security tools, and can be found on credit cards and in currency, which reduces the likelihood of forgery. Hologram security items, such as stickers, are difficult for the average crook to duplicate.

The medical industry, too, can benefit from holograms. They can help store vital medical and dental records in a convenient, easy to use format.

Here’s an interesting one: some museums take holograms of their valuable artifacts. They do this to check for deterioration over time, as well as for insurance purposes. Museum holograms allow people in other parts of the world to encounter a rare artifact without being in its physical presence!

So the next time you take out your hologram coin collection, appreciate the technology you’re admiring. Hologram technology is sure to be of growing importance in the years to come!

Lady Liberty is tired of her drab look found on thousands of coins around the United States. She is ready for something new and exciting! While she may not appear on the Silver Eagle dollar dressed in the latest fashion, there is definitely something different about her.

Several mints, including the Morgan Mint, have enhanced this beautiful depiction of Liberty using highly technical hologram imaging machinery. The eagle on the back also gets a facelift, with brilliant colors in 3D illuminating from the image.

Morgan Mint offers three unique versions of this hologram Silver Eagle coin. The first accents the image of Liberty with subdued hologram pastels, while the background blazes American spirit, with the image of the American flag colorized onto the silver dollar coin. The eagle on the other side has no hologram enhancements added.

The second features Liberty in the crisp pastel hologram colors, with the hologram sun setting in the background, which remains silver with no enhancements. The eagle on the reverse is also untouched. The final hologram Silver Eagle coin highlights both Liberty and the Eagle with gold hologram application, a process unique to this coin. The gold offsets the silver backdrop of the coin, making it an attractive addition to your collection.

The Merrick Mint is riding on the popularity of the Statehood Quarters, first issued in 1999 (to be completed in 2009). The state quarters each feature a state, and include images associated with the state. For instance, the 2002 Louisiana quarter features the Louisiana Purchase, a pelican (state bird), and a trumpet, representing the jazz that originated in New Orleans.

Merrick Mint uses a high quality hologram process to enhance the hologram quarters with lively colors. Merrick Mint uses the subtle approach to hologram coins, electing to use subdued hues of the rainbow on the images of the quarters only, keeping the background intact.

Because these quarters will never be minted again after their 10-week stint at the U.S. Mint, these hologram quarters won’t be available for long, as collectors recognize their value. The Mint offers collectors the opportunity to purchase sets of five hologram quarters from each year the quarters were issued (with more on the way). The quarters are displayed in an attractive closeable black case, and are accompanied by a Merrick Mint Certificate of Authenticity attesting to the precision and quality of the hologram application of each coin.

Currently, each set of hologram quarters sells online for between $20 and $30.

To fully appreciate a hologram coin, it’s important to know a little about holograms in general. You already know that a hologram is 2 superimposed images, joined to form a 3D image. However, you can’t take hologram images with your camera! They require techniques that use of interfering waves that capture 3D images, through the use of lasers.

While lasers give hologram technology a new dimension, so to speak, the basics of holography have been around for over 100 years. In 1886, Frenchman Gabriel Lippmann used wave light interference as a way to capture color images in photographs. Using mercury covered glass photographic plates, he was able to reflect the light waves through the mercury emulsion, creating wave interference. These were the first holograms.

In the 1960s, with the advent of the laser, additional advances were made with hologram images, and the technology we know today was developed. There are several types of holograms:

• Integral
• Embossed
• Reflection
• Dichromate

Before you start shopping for hologram coins to add to your collection, you should be aware that the U.S. Mint does not produce, sell, or endorse hologram currency or any other type of modified U.S. coin. It is, however, perfectly legal for businesses to colorize or apply holographic technology to U.S. coinage, as long as they adhere to copyright and trademark laws and regulations applicable to the coin’s design.

Not all hologram coins accent the original characters on the coin (i.e. Liberty and the Eagle). Some companies superimpose pop culture or sports icons on the face of U.S. coins, typically the American Eagle silver bullion coin. The U.S. Mint is strongly opposed to these practices, as they eliminate the intended design and beauty of a coin. U.S. coins are considered “sacrosanct.” In fact, Congress must authorize the theme, image and inscription for a coin. Any practice that detracts from a coin’s design and purpose defiles the coin and takes away from the tradition that is built around the designing and minting of a coin.

The U.S. Mint states that hologram coins and colorized coins are not necessarily good investments, and that they serve well as collectibles or items of interests rather than long-term investment vehicles.

In anticipation of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, the Royal Canadian Mint has decided to issue 15 coins featuring hologram images of sports and athletics associated with the Olympic Winter Games. The $25 sterling silver coins will begin being issued in 2007 and end in 2009, with five coins issued each year. Only 45,000 of each coin will be minted, making the coins that much more valuable!

The first coin of the series, Curling, has been released. This coin, which highlights the centuries-old sport that only recently became an Olympic full-medal sport in 1998 in Nagano, Japan.

The Royal Canadian Mint sells the coins for C$69.95, and offers collectors the opportunity to purchase all 15 at this fixed price as a set. Subscribers to the set will receive each coin as it is issued (free shipping too!), as well as an official Collector Case to display the 15 coins. After the Vancouver Olympics, the owner of a hologram coin will receive a special issue Certificate of Authenticity that will detail the actual number of coin sets sold.

If you are a fan of hologram coins and the Olympics, this is the ideal collector’s set for you! By buying the set, you essentially lock in the price of C$69.95 for all 15 of your coins. What a bargain!

With so many beautiful holographic coins on the market, it is hard to know where to start! There are, of course, a full range of U.S. hologram currency coins, including the famous Silver Eagle dollar coin, with Liberty and the Eagle accented in shimmering colors, as well as the Statehood Quarters, reflecting 3D images of every state in the U.S. There is also the gold Presidential Dollar, which features silver hologram of each President, creating a unique look.

But that’s just the U.S! Canada and Mexico both offer a collection of hologram coins. Mexico’s Silver Libertad shows off the Angel of Independence with a gold hologram, in front of a colorized image of the Mexican flag. Canada has enhanced both its gold and silver $5 Maple Leaf coin with beautiful hologram detail.

We’re not done yet! Many companies have profited off America’s love of sports or pop culture icons, and have created hologram coins and tokens that feature some of the most well-known American icons in hologram!

With so many types of hologram coins to choose from, you will have no difficulty starting this branch of your coin collection. There are many reputable dealers online who sell hologram currency at a fair price.

If you pay attention in the coin world, you’ve probably seen coins with an enhanced, 3D color image on them. These are hologram coins. But, you ask, what is a hologram?

A hologram is a 3D photograph that appears to have depth. Two 2D images taken from different vantage points are superimposed on one another, resulting in a “deep” look. The hologram is printed on a set of very thin curved silver plates, which diffract light. This diffraction is what causes the unusual colors of a hologram.

Today, companies apply this hologram technology to the face of coins, creating an eye-appealing colorful image on a coin. Many countries have commemorative hologram coins, including the U.S., Canada and Mexico. These coins, however, aren’t authorized by any official mints, and do not work as circulating currency. They are for display and collecting only. Many collectors strive to collect all of an issue of hologram coins. For example, the Statehood Quarters have hologram counterparts, and many collectors interested in quarters strive to collect them all.

Hologram coins are prolific online. A simple Google search for “hologram coins” will generate 344,000 results. Some of the best places to look for these collectibles are:

• MorganMint.com
• MerrickMint.com
• eBay.com