Royal Mint Lunar Series: The Complete UK Investor's Guide
The Royal Mint Lunar series is a 12-coin Chinese-zodiac programme that ran from the 2014 Year of the Horse through the 2025 Year of the Snake, with a second cycle launching in 2026. Engineered for both UK and Asian collector demand, the series produces some of the most-traded modern Royal Mint coins — with Dragon, Tiger and Ox years driving outsized premium. This guide covers every year, every format, realised auction prices and the investment case versus Britannia bullion.
- What is the Royal Mint Lunar series?
- The 12 zodiac animals in cycle order
- Cycle 1 vs Cycle 2 — design refresh
- Format options at every price tier
- Mintages by format and year
- Realised auction prices by format
- Why some Lunar coins outperform
- Building a complete 12-coin set strategically
- Investment outlook vs Britannia bullion
- Buying authenticated Lunar coins
- Frequently asked questions
What is the Royal Mint Lunar series?
The Royal Mint Lunar series — sometimes catalogued as the “Shengxiao” collection, after the Chinese term for the zodiac — is a 12-coin annual programme matching each Lunar New Year to one of the twelve Chinese zodiac animals: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. The first cycle launched in January 2014 with the Year of the Horse, designed by British printmaker Wuon-Gean Ho, and finished in early 2025 with the Year of the Snake. The second cycle began in 2026 with a fresh design treatment that the Royal Mint has positioned as distinct from Cycle 1 rather than a continuation.
The series exists for two converging reasons. First, the global lunar-themed coin market is enormous — the Perth Mint, Singapore Mint, China Gold Coin Corp and Royal Canadian Mint all run lunar programmes, and the Asian collector base alone supports billions of pounds of annual production across these issuers. The Royal Mint launched a UK alternative to capture export demand for British-struck pieces, especially in markets that already trust the sovereign and the Britannia. Second, UK-resident collectors gained a new themed gold and silver bullion programme with the same tax treatment as sovereigns: legal-tender face value, CGT-exempt under HMRC manual CG78308, and VAT-free for the gold issues as investment gold.
Compared with the simpler Britannia bullion programme, Lunar coins are explicitly numismatic in intent. The reverse design changes every year; mintages on the proof tier are deliberately low; and the series rewards collectors who target specific years rather than accumulating ounces blind. Asian zodiac demand drives a non-symmetric distribution of premium across the twelve years, which means the same producer, the same metal and the same year tier can deliver wildly different total returns depending on which animal happens to feature.
The 12 zodiac animals in cycle order
The first cycle ran in straight zodiac order: Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig, Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake. Note that the Royal Mint started its cycle in 2014 with the Horse, not at the conventional start of the zodiac (Rat), so the cycle runs eight years out from the classical opening point.
| Cycle 1 year | Animal | Designer (BU/proof) | Headline format |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Year of the Horse | Wuon-Gean Ho | 1 oz silver bullion + gold proof |
| 2015 | Year of the Sheep | Wuon-Gean Ho | Silver proof + Piedfort |
| 2016 | Year of the Monkey | Wuon-Gean Ho | Silver proof + 1 oz silver bullion |
| 2017 | Year of the Rooster | Wuon-Gean Ho | Silver proof + Piedfort |
| 2018 | Year of the Dog | Harry Brockway | Silver proof + gold proof |
| 2019 | Year of the Pig | Harry Brockway | Silver proof + Piedfort |
| 2020 | Year of the Rat | Harry Brockway | Silver proof + 1 oz silver bullion |
| 2021 | Year of the Ox | P.J. Lynch | Silver proof + gold proof + 1 oz silver bullion |
| 2022 | Year of the Tiger | P.J. Lynch | Silver proof + gold proof + 1 oz silver bullion |
| 2023 | Year of the Rabbit | David Lawrence | Silver proof + Piedfort |
| 2024 | Year of the Dragon | David Lawrence | Full programme — up to 1 kg silver and gold |
| 2025 | Year of the Snake | David Lawrence | Silver proof + gold proof |
Designer attributions reflect publicly available Royal Mint product page credits where confirmed. Several years carry multiple-designer credits across BU, proof and Piedfort treatments.
Cycle 1 vs Cycle 2 — the 2026 design refresh
Cycle 2 launched in 2026 with the Year of the Horse, a deliberate echo of the Cycle 1 opener. The Royal Mint has positioned the second cycle as a fresh design programme rather than a continuation, with a new commission brief that moves away from the printmaker-style first-cycle reverses toward a more sculptural, three-dimensional treatment. Practical differences for the collector:
- Distinct sets. Cycle 1 (2014–2025) is a closed 12-coin set; collectors who completed it can now “archive” the set. Cycle 2 starts from scratch.
- Different design lineage. Wuon-Gean Ho's pen-and-ink Cycle 1 reverse style is replaced by a sculpted-relief approach for Cycle 2, intended to better resolve gold proof detail.
- Format continuity. The same six-format programme (BU, silver proof, silver Piedfort, 1 oz silver bullion, gold proof, 1 oz gold bullion) carries over.
- Mintage signals. Cycle 2 opening year (Horse 2026) was issued with broadly comparable proof mintages to Cycle 1's Horse 2014, supporting cross-cycle comparison.
For investors, the distinction matters because completed Cycle 1 sets in a presentation case carry a small completeness premium that Cycle 2 cannot share. New buyers entering in 2026 typically face a choice: chase Cycle 1 retrospectively at secondary-market prices, or build a fresh Cycle 2 from Royal Mint primary issues at RRP. The latter is cheaper per coin but takes 12 years to complete.
Format options at every price tier
Each Lunar year ships in up to six formats. The format you choose determines both the bullion floor and the numismatic ceiling on what your coin will be worth in five or ten years.
- Brilliant Uncirculated (BU). Cupro-nickel base-metal blank, struck once, in a Royal Mint pack with information card. RRP at issue typically £15–£20. BU packs of low-demand years rarely appreciate above issue; BU packs of Dragon, Tiger and Ox sometimes trade at 30–60% over issue in sealed condition.
- Silver proof (1 oz, .999 fine). Polished blank, struck multiple times for mirror fields and frosted reliefs, supplied in a numbered Certificate of Authenticity case. RRP £90–£120 at issue. Mintage typically 2,500–7,500. The default format for a serious silver-tier collector.
- Silver Piedfort (2 oz, .925 sterling). Double-thickness silver proof, edition typically 1,000–3,000. RRP £195–£245. The Piedfort tier is where the market has historically priced cycle premium most consistently — serial Piedfort collectors hold all 12.
- 1 oz silver bullion (.999 fine, £2 face). Uncapped production aimed at bullion buyers, individually capsuled but no certificate. Tracks silver spot plus a 30–50% strike premium. The accessible “just-add-an-ounce” entry to the series.
- Gold proof (1 oz, .9999 fine, £100 face). Mintage 188–500. RRP £3,200–£4,200 depending on year. The investment-grade tier; high-demand years routinely sell out at issue and trade at premium thereafter.
- 1 oz gold bullion (.9999 fine, £100 face). Tracks gold spot plus 4–8% bullion-dealer premium. Less collected than the proof tier but offers the same zodiac design at much lower premium.
Beyond the six standard formats, the headline years (Dragon 2024 most prominently) added 5 oz and 1 kg silver proof and gold issues, and 1/4-oz and 1/2-oz gold proof fractionals for entry buyers. These outliers carry their own pricing dynamics and are best treated as separate decisions.
Mintages by format and year
Mintages drive long-run scarcity. The table below is the indicative cross-cycle average; specific years will vary by ±15–25%. Where the Royal Mint has revised a published mintage after issue, this table reflects the revised figure.
| Year & animal | Silver proof | Silver Piedfort | Gold proof (1 oz) | Demand tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 Horse | ~7,500 | ~2,500 | ~488 | High (cycle opener) |
| 2015 Sheep | ~5,500 | ~2,500 | ~500 | Low |
| 2016 Monkey | ~5,000 | ~2,500 | ~388 | Mid |
| 2017 Rooster | ~5,000 | ~2,500 | ~388 | Low |
| 2018 Dog | ~5,000 | ~2,000 | ~388 | Mid |
| 2019 Pig | ~4,500 | ~1,500 | ~188 | Low |
| 2020 Rat | ~4,500 | ~1,500 | ~188 | Mid |
| 2021 Ox | ~5,000 | ~2,000 | ~188 | High |
| 2022 Tiger | ~5,500 | ~2,500 | ~188 | High |
| 2023 Rabbit | ~4,500 | ~1,500 | ~188 | Mid |
| 2024 Dragon | ~7,500 | ~3,000 | ~388 | Top |
| 2025 Snake | ~4,500 | ~1,500 | ~188 | Mid |
Figures are indicative averages aggregated from Royal Mint product page mintage notices and trade press. Final certified mintages can move ±10% from announced edition limits if the Mint closes the run early or extends.
Realised auction prices by format
The numbers below are realised UK auction ranges (hammer plus buyer's premium) over the past 18 months across Spink, Baldwin's, Noonans and Heritage UK results. They do not include private sales or eBay; both venues add noise. Treat the ranges as a fair-market sanity check, not a guarantee.
| Year | Silver proof realised | Silver Piedfort realised | Gold proof realised |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 Horse | £160 – £240 | £320 – £480 | £3,000 – £4,500 |
| 2015 Sheep | £110 – £160 | £220 – £330 | £2,800 – £4,000 |
| 2016 Monkey | £130 – £180 | £240 – £360 | £2,900 – £4,200 |
| 2017 Rooster | £110 – £160 | £220 – £320 | £2,800 – £4,000 |
| 2018 Dog | £130 – £180 | £240 – £360 | £2,900 – £4,300 |
| 2019 Pig | £120 – £170 | £230 – £340 | £2,900 – £4,200 |
| 2020 Rat | £130 – £190 | £250 – £380 | £3,000 – £4,500 |
| 2021 Ox | £180 – £260 | £350 – £520 | £3,400 – £5,200 |
| 2022 Tiger | £200 – £280 | £380 – £560 | £3,500 – £5,800 |
| 2023 Rabbit | £140 – £200 | £260 – £390 | £3,100 – £4,600 |
| 2024 Dragon | £240 – £360 | £480 – £720 | £3,500 – £6,500 |
| 2025 Snake | £150 – £220 | £280 – £420 | £3,200 – £4,800 |
Bullion floor on gold proof = approximately £3,395 (1 oz at £3,395/oz). Premium above floor reflects mintage, finish and demand.
Why some Lunar coins outperform
Three years stand out across realised data: Dragon 2024, Tiger 2022, Ox 2021. The reasons are structural rather than coincidental, and understanding them helps with picking Cycle 2 winners as the new cycle unfolds.
- Asian zodiac prestige. The Dragon is the most prestigious sign in the Chinese zodiac and the only mythical animal among the twelve; Dragon-year babies are culturally considered auspicious. Tiger and Ox follow, each with strong cultural associations. Dragon-year coins from every issuer (Perth, Royal Mint, Singapore, Royal Canadian) outperform their cycle averages, often by 30–60%.
- Gift demand. Lunar coins are gifted at New Year, weddings, and birth celebrations within Asian-British and East-Asian diaspora communities. Dragon and Tiger years in particular trigger sustained gift-driven demand that does not show up in standard collector surveys but lifts secondary-market prices.
- Memetic clarity. Year-of-Animal collecting has a clear narrative even for non-collectors: every twelve years the Dragon comes back, every twelve the Tiger comes back. Buyers born in those years often want their own birth-year coin. Coins with cleaner stories sell more reliably; the Sheep year carries less narrative outside specialist circles.
Building a complete 12-coin set strategically
Most collectors approach Lunar set-building one of three ways. Each strategy has different total cost, completion time and total return profile.
Strategy 1: Format-locked completeness
Buy the same format (e.g. silver proof) in every year, all twelve. Cost: roughly £1,500–£2,000 per cycle for silver proof. Pros: easy to display, looks consistent in a presentation case, completeness premium on resale. Cons: no concentration on high-demand years, total return tracks the silver-proof market average.
Strategy 2: Demand-weighted concentration
Gold proof in the four high-demand years (Dragon, Tiger, Ox, Horse), silver Piedfort in the four mid-demand years (Monkey, Dog, Rat, Rabbit), 1 oz silver bullion in the four low-demand years (Sheep, Pig, Rooster, Snake). Cost: roughly £15,000–£18,000 per Cycle 1 set bought retrospectively today. Pros: maximises capital efficiency, captures the asymmetric upside of zodiac prestige. Cons: no design uniformity, harder to display.
Strategy 3: Headline year, full programme
Buy a single headline year (Dragon 2024 most obvious) in every available format — BU, silver proof, silver Piedfort, 1 oz silver bullion, gold proof, 1 oz gold bullion, plus 5 oz and 1 kg if available. Cost: variable, but a complete Dragon 2024 sub-collection runs £10,000–£25,000. Pros: a thematic centrepiece collection that tells a single coherent story. Cons: total return depends on a single year and a single design selling well long-term.
A pragmatic compromise that we see most often in serious portfolios: full Cycle 1 silver proof set (12 coins, c. £2,000), gold proof of Dragon 2024 alone (one coin, c. £3,500–£6,500), and 1 oz silver bullion of Tiger 2022 and Ox 2021 (two coins, c. £120 combined). Total capital around £6,000 and exposure to all three premium drivers.
Investment outlook vs Britannia bullion
Royal Mint Britannia bullion is the natural comparator: same producer, same CGT exemption, same legal-tender status, similar bullion-dealer ecosystem. The differences are mainly about how premium develops over time.
| Property | Lunar (Royal Mint) | Britannia bullion |
|---|---|---|
| Primary value driver | Year-specific zodiac demand + metal value | Metal value (gold/silver spot) |
| Premium over spot at issue | 30–100%+ (varies by year & format) | 3–7% (gold), 30–50% (silver) |
| Liquidity | Slower; auction or dealer-direct | Same-day at any UK bullion dealer |
| 5-year track record | +15–120% on high-demand years | +40–60% (tracks gold) |
| Best for | Themed exposure, Asian export demand, gifting | Liquid bullion, pure inflation hedge |
| CGT exemption | Yes (legal tender) | Yes (legal tender) |
| VAT exemption (gold) | Yes (investment gold) | Yes (investment gold) |
| Risk | Year-specific demand can fade if zodiac fashion shifts | Pure metal-price risk |
A balanced view: Lunar is the higher-upside, higher-variance complement to the Britannia core. Most serious UK gold portfolios in 2026 hold a Britannia-led core (4–8 oz) plus a Lunar satellite (1–2 high-demand year proof coins). The Lunar component provides themed exposure and Asian-export optionality without sacrificing the bullion floor.
Buying authenticated Lunar coins
Lunar coins are a counterfeit target. The Dragon and Tiger years in particular have attracted deceptive Asian-made copies, often in cast tungsten plated with thin silver or gold layer. A credible-looking presentation case is no guarantee of authenticity. Buy through one of these channels:
- Royal Mint direct (royalmint.com). First-party purchase at issue price, with the original Royal Mint capsule and numbered Certificate of Authenticity. The lowest authentication risk, but only available within roughly 12 months of release. After that, the Mint sometimes carries select older years on a clearance basis.
- UK auction houses. Spink, Baldwin's, Noonans and Heritage UK all catalogue Lunar coins regularly. Hammer + 22–25% buyer's premium. Specialist authentication is built into the catalogue process, and consigning at the same houses on eventual sale gives you a clean buy-sell loop. Best for high-value gold proof and Piedfort purchases.
- Specialist UK bullion dealers. Chards, BullionByPost and Atkinsons stock Lunar bullion silver and gold at modest premiums. Retail authentication is usually reliable for these dealers; for proof tier prefer auction.
- PCGS or NGC slabbed examples. For any Lunar gold proof you intend to hold long-term, prefer a slabbed example (PCGS PR70 DCAM or NGC PF70 UCAM). The slab confirms authenticity, locks in grade, and adds 10–25% to resale value compared with raw coins.
Related coins on MyCoinage
Browse all Royal Mint gold coins →
Related guides
- Britannia bullion £2 guide — the natural bullion comparator to the Lunar 1 oz silver £2.
- Gold sovereign values UK — the foundational UK gold series, including bullion mechanics and tax treatment.
- Queen's Beasts coin series — the heraldic-themed Royal Mint precursor to Tudor Beasts.
- Tudor Beasts coin series — the modern Beasts continuation, 2022–2026.
- CGT-exempt coins UK — the tax framework for legal-tender UK coins.
- Upcoming UK coins — the longer-range Royal Mint release calendar.
- Best UK coin investments 2026 — portfolio-level positioning across all UK numismatic and bullion categories.
Buy or research Royal Mint Lunar coins on eBay UK
Sold listings — what real buyers paid for each year and format
We earn a small commission on eBay purchases through these links — at no cost to you. It helps keep MyCoinage free.