International Space Station (tantalum)

The 500 tenge silver coin "ISS" is part of the space-themed collector issues of the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The "International Space Station" coin is dedicated to the largest international project in space. The first module, the Russian "Zarya", was put into orbit on November 20, 1998 by a Proton-K rocket from Baikonur, and two weeks later the American "Unity" module was attached to it. The first long-term crew, which included William Shepherd, Yuri Gidzenko, and Sergei Krikalev, arrived at the station in November 2000. Since then, the ISS has been continuously inhabited.

The space agencies of Russia, the USA, Europe, Japan, and Canada participate in the project. The station orbits at an altitude of about 400 kilometers, completing a revolution in approximately an hour and a half, and serves as a laboratory for research in microgravity conditions, medicine, biology, and technology. Manned spacecraft and cargo vehicles are sent to it from Baikonur to this day. Among the cosmonauts associated with Kazakhstan are Toktar Aubakirov, who flew in 1991, Talgat Musabayev, who visited the "Mir" station and the Soyuz TM-27 spacecraft, and Aidyn Aimbetov, who worked on the ISS in 2015. The 2013 issue emphasizes the international character of space exploration.

Obverse

The official side of the coin bears the state designations. Inscriptions are located along the circumference: at the top "ҚАЗАҚСТАН РЕСПУБЛИКАСЫ" in Kazakh, at the bottom "REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN" in English. To the right of the center is the face value: the number "500" and below it the word "ТЕҢГЕ" — five hundred tenge. Below the face value in small print are the designations of the metals and the mass of each of them — 925 fineness silver and tantalum, thus marking the bimetallic composition of the coin. Next to the technical data is the trademark of the Kazakhstan Mint. The central field continues the space theme: a vertical line divides it into two parts; on one side, a starry sky with orbits and stars is shown, on the other — a full-length silhouette of a person against the background of a spiral galaxy, and small dots are scattered in the upper part. This composition is unified for all coins of the series, making it possible to immediately recognize the issue and distinguish it from ordinary circulation coins.

The unity of the official side's design emphasizes that we have before us parts of a common thematic project: the design on the artistic side changes, while the state part remains recognizable. The strict arrangement of the inscriptions along the arc and the clear relief of the digits ensure the readability of the face value, and the mint mark indicates the place of minting. The contrast between the smooth field and the relief elements preserves the expressiveness of the composition under any lighting. This side serves simultaneously as the coin's document and part of its design, which is why it is as important in the collection as the artistic one.

Reverse

The central field of the artistic side is made of blue tantalum and framed by a silver ring. The blue background shows the ISS in perspective: a truss with solar arrays and modules. At the bottom left, an astronaut in a spacesuit is working in open space, and in the lower part, a stylized fragment of the Earth with the outlines of continents is visible. This gives the composition depth and scale.

On the silver ring are inscriptions: at the top left "ХҒС" — the Kazakh abbreviation of the station, on the right "МКС" — the Russian one, at the bottom along the arc "INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION", and to the right of the station is the year "2013". Two five-pointed stars on the ring and a small symbol at the top complete the design. The combination of silver and dark blue tantalum makes the coin one of the most expressive in the thematic series.