The Perth Mint launched the Lunar Series in 1996 with the Year of the Mouse, and unlike every other coin on this list, it wasn't designed as an open-ended annual release — it was built from day one as a 12-year, 12-animal zodiac cycle that collectors are explicitly meant to complete. Series I ran 1996 through 2007, one animal per year; Series II began in 2008 with the Mouse again, this time with a wider size range and higher mintage limits than the original run, which means early Series I coins — produced when the program's popularity hadn't yet been established — now carry a genuine scarcity premium over their Series II counterparts of the same animal and size. Series III began in 2020, again starting with the Mouse, with a redesigned Queen Elizabeth II portrait on the obverse. The coins span an unusually wide range of sizes and metals across the three series (gold from 1/20 oz up to 1 kilo, silver similarly broad), which means a "complete set" can mean very different things depending on whether a collector is chasing one animal per series, one size across all three series, or the full combinatorial set.
The single most important decision for a Lunar Series collector is scope, because the series is explicitly designed to reward set-completion, and an undefined scope is how people end up with an expensive, unfinishable collection: decide up front whether you're building one coin per animal within a single series (12 coins, a genuinely achievable goal), one specific animal across all three series (3 coins, a good low-cost way to sample the whole program), or the full cross-series, cross-size set (a serious, expensive, multi-year undertaking). Series I coins are the scarcest and most expensive per coin, so a budget-conscious start usually means Series II or III first, with Series I additions coming later as a deliberate upgrade rather than a starting point.
The dates serious Lunar Series collectors specifically chase — the rest of the run trades close to melt value.
Series I begins with the Year of the Mouse — the first coin in what's designed from the outset as a 12-year, 12-animal zodiac cycle, explicitly built for collectors to complete a full set rather than as a standalone annual release.
Series II begins (Year of the Mouse again, on the 12-year cycle), introducing a larger size range and higher mintage limits than Series I — Series I coins, produced in smaller numbers before the program's popularity was established, now carry a real scarcity premium over their Series II equivalents.
Mintage figure pending verification against official mint records.
Series III begins (Year of the Mouse a third time), with a redesigned obverse portrait of Queen Elizabeth II and further mintage changes — collectors now track three parallel 12-animal cycles, which is the entire basis for this series' appeal as a "complete the set" collecting project.
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Start tracking freeSeries I (1996–2007) had lower mintages and a narrower size range. Series II (2008–2019) expanded sizes and increased mintage limits. Series III (2020–2031) introduced a redesigned obverse portrait. All three follow the same 12-year, 12-animal zodiac cycle.
Series I was produced before the program's popularity was established, resulting in lower mintages. Collectors now pay a genuine scarcity premium for Series I coins of the same animal and size compared to their Series II equivalents.
Pick one specific animal (often the current or upcoming zodiac year) and buy one from each of the three series — a 3-coin starter set that samples the whole program's history without committing to a full 12-animal run.