ANA Panda buying panic coming?

Pandamania swept American numismatics in the 1980s with the issuance of show-related special Chinese Panda coin designs.

Will this fervor return Aug. 9 -11 at the American Numismatic Association World’s Fair of Money in Anaheim, Calif.?

Show organizers hope so.

One-ounce gold and silver Pandas as well as a 12-ounce piece will be sold at the convention.

No prices have been revealed as yet.

There will be 2,000 one-ounce silver versions available, 125 gold and 125 of the silver 12-ounce pieces.

If you guessed the mintage numbers have something to do with the 125th anniversary of the ANA, you go to the head of the class.

Prices have not yet been revealed, but plans are already in place to allocate supplies daily to avoid an immediate sellout.

If this reminds you of the gold Kennedy offer in 2014, you are not alone, but whether a return to Pandamania can rival the level of public interest in the 2014 gold offer remains to be seen.

Designer of the pieces is Yu Min, who created the Shanghai Mint’s 1983 silver Panda. He has designed more Panda coins than all the other desingers. He was recognized by the Coin of the Year judges for his 1983 work with a COTY Award in 1985.

A marketing company will be offering 50-gram versions of the gold and silver pieces. One troy ounce is 31.103 grams.

As you can see, Sino-American Numismatic Friendship is celebrated along with the ANA’s anniversary.

Is there a Sino-American profit motive to be shared as well?

Go to Anaheim and see.

I would like to thank Michael Chou for sending me these images.

Buzz blogger Dave Harper has twice won the Numismatic Literary Guild Award for Best Blog and is editor of the weekly newspaper "Numismatic News."

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