1) Are you a private or government mint?
We are a private mint, which does not allow us to mint "coins," which have government-sponsored denominations in fiat currency. However, we are free from oversight to design and produce our own products.
2) Where are you located and where do you ship from?
We are the unofficial mint of the Republic of Armenia, but our production facility is located in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. This is where we ship all products from.
3) What makes you different from other mints?
We are a completely original style of mint, which specializes in creating bullion products based on Armenian history and culture. Additionally, all our products are limited editions, are produced in series to collect, and include a historical description with each coin.
4) You call them "coins," but aren't they medals?
Yes, we do not claim to sell "coins" in the strict definition of the word, as we are not a government agency, nor are we authorized to issue currency. However, we do include designs of ancient coins, and other forms of ancient denominations, which we can call coins, even though the systems used are antiquated. We do not currently produce any coins for any countries, instead, we produce collectible bullion, artistic, and investment pieces. These days, collectors and investors use the term "coin" very loosely, and we are speaking in common grammatical, although technically incorrect English.
5) What are a tetradrachm and a drachm?
These are ancient units of measurements, part of the Greek attic system, which became popularized and used in the region. Originally, the weights of these silver coins were pure and proper, but over time, the scarcity of silver caused debasement and lower weights to be attributed to these measurements. There was also a wide variation of purity and weight coins, as the process was not as refined. When choosing our weights, we tried to choose the best ancient examples possible to work with and averaged the weights found. This way, when you hold our coins, you can get the most authentic experience possible.
6) What is the purity of your coins?
All of our coins have the purity stated on the certificate of authenticity, and are stated clearly in the description for each item. We only produce bullion in 99.9% fine silver, which can easily be verified by a modern x-ray machine, which most serious collectors own, or is available at your local coin shop.
7) Why don't you produce silver coins in troy ounces?
As the first series we released is based on ancient coins, we thought it would be beneficial to keep them as close to their authentic weights as possible. If you complete the set, the set will weigh out in a proper troy oz weight. As for our second series, which are coins created completely from our own designs, we are issuing them in full 31.1g troy oz weights.
8) Where do you get your artwork?
All of our artwork is used with permission from the artists, is free to use, or produced in-house. We make it a point of only working with Armenian artists, as we specialize in Armenian history and culture.
9) What is the Armenian Network State?
The founder of our company, Andranik Aghazarian, is a member of the Armenian Network State. It is an Armenian NGO that seeks to bring together talent from the diaspora to build a better Armenia. A portion of all profits from this company is contributed to projects of the Network State. More information can be found on their website: https://networkstate.io/en/.
10) Does silver tarnish?
As all our products are made of 99.9% fine silver, silver will tarnish/oxidize/age, from handling and exposure to the air. Some numismatic collectors prefer the look of a patina on their silver coins, whereas others don't. The best way to keep your silver coins looking shiny and new for the longest is to keep them in the airtight capsules and handle them with clean hands or gloves.
11) How can I tell my coin is authentic?
When creating our packaging and designs, we have included a number of ways to ensure you have an authentic product. I shall list some of them below:
1) All of our coins are unique designs that are extremely difficult for a private individual with basic equipment and machinery to replicate. Short of setting up an industrial shop, it would be nearly impossible to produce the level of quality in the designs we have.
2) All of our coins are sold with premium booklets that contain details about the coin, of which images can be seen on our website. These booklets contain features such as being hot-pressed with 24k gold inlays.
3) Within the booklet contains the Certificate of Authenticity, also inlaid with 24k gold, but contains a tamperproof 3d holographic sticker. Each sticker is individually serialized so that you know of the 25,000 coins for each design, and which number(s) you possess. Collectors often seek out low serial numbers or numbers in a sequence.
If you have any other questions, please feel free to contact us directly on our Facebook page!