2002 - The Elephant - Strength of Africa, Big Five series, Sterling Silver Poof Coins

THE DESIGN

The four coins share the same obverse, which depicts a mature elephant bull. Different aspects of the elephant’s everyday activities are depicted on the reverse of each coin. Earth-based design elements form the background which links the four coins and creates a modern coin series with a strong African feel.

THE ANIMAL
The elephant is the largest living land mammal. It is estimated that the elephant has roamed the earth for 1,6 million years. The two remaining species, the Indian and African elephant, are now limited to tropical forests, savannas, deserts and river valleys. The African elephant can reach a height of 4 meters. Despite its weight (±7,000 kg) it walks almost noiselessly and is exceptionally graceful.

Elephants are gregarious and keenly sensitive to one another’s calls and movements. Elephants communicate not only by vocalizations from their trunks but also by touch, smell and posture. The trunk is an extremely versatile muscle and is used for a variety of tasks such as drinking and spraying water, trumpeting calls, pulling down trees, picking up twigs and drawing up dust for dust bathing.
By means of finger-like lobes on the end of the trunk and by the sucking action of the nostrils, elephants can pick up and examine small objects. This highly sensitive organ is also raised into the air to detect wind-borne scents.

ARTIST
Lilian Guerra, resident artist at the South African Mint designed the four wildlife coins.

ENGRAVERS
The obverse design for the coins was engraved by the South African Mint’s chief die-engraver, Arthur Sutherland. South African Mint resident die-engravers, Cecil Moses, Marthinus Scheepers and Paul Botes engraved the reverse designs.