Year of the Dog

The Year of the Dog is the eleventh sign in the twelve-year cycle of the Chinese lunar calendar. It began on 16 February 2018, with the Spring Festival, and ended on 4 February 2019; in the system of heavenly stems and earthly branches this year is called the year of the Earth Dog. According to the old legend the Jade Emperor invited the animals to a river-crossing race and then named a year after each of them in order of arrival: the dog, an excellent swimmer, came only eleventh — in the Chinese legend it was delayed because it wanted to play in the water. The sign is linked with loyalty, honesty, a sense of duty and readiness to protect one's family; in Chinese culture the dog guards the home, and the image of a dog at the entrance has long been regarded as a talisman. The dog was often shown in New Year pictures and paper cuttings used to decorate windows, and the word 'dog' appears in popular sayings about devotion and vigilance. People born in the year of the Dog are traditionally considered reliable, straightforward and fair; it is also said that they do best in tasks that demand perseverance and honesty, and that among their friends they are the ones to rely on in difficult moments. The twelve animals of the cycle repeat every twelve years and, together with the five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, water), form a sixty-year round, so the 'earth' dog will return only after sixty years. There are New Year omens too: according to folk belief the second day of the Spring Festival is regarded as the birthday of dogs, and on that day animals are not to be hurt and are fed better. The image of a dog on a coin also echoes the fact that in China it was long regarded as a companion of man: dogs were kept at courts and in peasant homes, they were shown on clay figurines in burials, and in myths a heavenly dog guards the gates of heaven. For mints the dog is an expressive subject with many breed variations, and in the design of the year artists usually emphasise the character of the animal — devotion and alertness. Silver coins with the animals of the lunar calendar belong to the Chinese Zodiac Bullion series: they are issued under the authority of the People's Bank of China and go on sale through China Gold Coin (CNGC). The silver 10 yuan coin of 2018 weighs 30 grams, has a diameter of 40 mm and is made of .999 silver. These parameters correspond to the standard of 30-gram silver coins that Chinese issues adopted in 2016: in earlier years coins of one troy ounce (31.104 g) were also found. For collectors the Year of the Dog is the eleventh step towards completing another cycle of twelve coins, and this is the angle from which such coins are most often bought. The face value of 10 yuan on the coin is symbolic: it is a commemorative coin not meant for payments. On the market its price is set by the weight of the metal and demand, so it trades an order of magnitude above the bimetallic circulation coin of 10 yuan with the same zodiac sign.

Obverse

The official side of the coin carries inscriptions in Chinese giving the country and the year of issue.

Reverse

A dog, the symbol of the year in the Chinese lunar calendar; the denomination of 10 yuan and an inscription in Chinese.