High relief the new thing?

Americans buyers like their gold plain. I learned that yesterday in a meeting with the Perth Mint team attending the World Money Fair in Berlin. What that means is that the trend to putting holograms on coins or colorizing coins is all well and good for silver or base metal issues, but when something so traditionally valuable as gold comes along, the buyers rebel at the idea of fancying it up.

Now the Perth Mint has worldwide reach. It could simply ignore American tastes, but the market is significant enough that it will not do so.

Perth also provides coin blanks to the U.S. Mint for the new Ultra High Relief Saint-
Gaudens gold $20 coin. It is not the only supplier, but a significant one. These coins don't need fancying up. Many American collectors feel that the design is the most beautiful ever created in the United States. The greater relief is something that the needs of commerce overruled in 1907, but where the market in 2009 is concerned, only collector views need be considered.

Perth has its own high relief coin in the form of a gold Koala. It is a beautiful coin as well. Perhaps high relief is becoming a new international trend. I will look around as the show goes on to see what I can learn.