MAS unveils 2021 Year of the Ox coins, which feature Coney Island where bull roamed

There will be 10 versions of the Year of the Ox coin that will be issued on Jan 1, 2021. PHOTO: MONETARY AUTHORITY OF SINGAPORE

SINGAPORE - Collectors can now pre-order the 2021 Year of the Ox coins.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) unveiled the limited-edition coins on Thursday (Nov 19).

The coins will be sold by The Singapore Mint, with the last day of pre-orders on Dec 20.

Coins that are oversubscribed will be allocated by balloting, said the MAS.

The 2021 coin features an ox against the backdrop of Coney Island Park, which the MAS described as "one of Singapore's ecologically sustainable parks with rich biodiversity".

The obverse of each coin bears the Singapore coat of arms with the year 2021.

A famed but elusive Brahman bull once roamed Coney Island until its death in September 2016.

How the bull found its way onto the island - connected by two bridges to Punggol Promenade and Pasir Ris Coast Industrial Park 6 - has remained a mystery.

The National Parks Board first found it while in the process of setting up the 50ha Coney Island Park that opened to the public in October 2015.

There will be 10 versions of the Year of the Ox coin that will be issued on Jan 1, 2021. PHOTO: MONETARY AUTHORITY OF SINGAPORE

There will be 10 versions of the Year of the Ox coin that will be issued on Jan 1, 2021.

Each coin comprises different metallic compositions, shapes and minting relief effects, said the MAS.

The rarest of the 10 is the five troy oz Gold Proof Coin, made with 999.9 fine gold with a face value of $200 in a round shape with a diameter of 60mm.

A hundred pieces of the coin will be available.

All the coins, except the most common nickel-plated zinc proof-like coin, will come with a serialised certificate of authenticity.

Special premium sets comprising various coin combinations will also be on sale.

The individual coins cost between $25 and $19,998 each, while the sets cost between $248 and $20,588.

The 2021 Year of the Ox coins are the fifth issue in the Singapore Fourth Chinese Almanac Coin Series, which are being issued over 12 years between 2017 and 2028.

The MAS said in 2017 that each year's issue will depict a zodiac animal in a park or natural landscape setting in Singapore.

2017's Year of the Rooster coins featured the animal in Kampong Buangkok, while 2018's Year of the Dog coins featured a dog in Singapore Botanic Gardens.

In the 2019 series, a boar was featured against a Pulau Ubin backdrop, and 2020's issue had a rat against the backdrop of Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.

Those hoping to purchase the 2021 coins may visit www.singaporemint.com or call The Singapore Mint on 6566-2626, 6895-0288, 6222-2486 or 6336-2878.

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