1/4 oz Noah's Ark Gold Coin

The 1/4 oz Noah's Ark Gold Coin

The Noah's Ark is Armenia's first and only investment-grade bullion coin programme, issued by the Central Bank of the Republic of Armenia and struck in Germany by Leipziger Edelmetallverarbeitung (LEV), the minting subsidiary of Geiger Edelmetalle. The gold series arrived in September 2020, nine years after the silver, in .9999 fine gold across 1 g, 1/4 oz, 1/2 oz, and 1 oz sizes.

The 1/4 oz coin contains 7.78 g of .9999 fine gold with a 10,000 Dram face value. The case for it is price. The Noah's Ark gold coin is one of the lowest-premium .9999 gold bullion coins available in Europe, produced at one of Germany's most modern private mints with sovereign central bank backing. It matches the 1/4 oz Gold Maple Leaf and Philharmonic on purity while typically undercutting them on premium.

The quarter ounce itself is a practical middle weight. Fractional gold at this size carries premiums of roughly 7-12% over spot, lower than 1/10 oz coins at 10-18% but above the 3-5% typical of 1 oz coins, and the lower outlay per coin suits regular monthly buying. Liquidity is good, below 1 oz but above the smallest fractions, and the coin's legal tender status and recognisable design support resale. For buyers who want fractional .9999 gold without paying the brand premium of the biggest names, this is one of the strongest options on the market.

Noah's Ark Gold Denominations and Dimensions

The reverse, designed by Eduard Kurghinyan and unchanged since the series launched, shows Noah's Ark floating on floodwaters with a white dove carrying an olive branch flying towards it, and Mount Ararat rising behind a sunrise. The obverse carries the Armenian coat of arms, a shield supported by a lion and an eagle, with inscriptions in Armenian and English, the denomination, purity, weight, year of issue, and the mint symbol. Production quality is guaranteed and checked by the Central Bank of Armenia, and the face value is nominal, far below the metal content.

Noah's Ark Gold Tax Treatment by Country

At .9999 fineness and with Armenian legal tender status, the gold Noah's Ark qualifies as investment gold in the jurisdictions that exempt it.

• UK: VAT-free as investment gold. Not UK legal tender, so it is not CGT-exempt; gains above the annual allowance are taxable. UK buyers wanting CGT exemption at a similar price point should compare the 1/4 oz gold Britannia.
• EU: Qualifies for the EU investment gold VAT exemption (over 900 fineness, minted after 1800, legal tender) and is listed on the EU Official Gazette list of VAT-exempt gold coins. Gold is VAT-exempt in Germany, where the coin is struck.
• US: No federal sales tax; most states exempt bullion. IRA-eligible, since .9999 purity exceeds the IRS minimum of 99.5% for gold.
• Canada: GST/HST exempt as gold refined to at least 99.5% purity.
• Australia and New Zealand: GST-free as investment-grade gold at or above 99.5% purity.
• Singapore: No GST on qualifying Investment Precious Metals, and no capital gains tax.
• Hong Kong: No sales tax, no import duty, no capital gains tax.

An Armenian Coin from a Leipzig Mint

The Noah's Ark programme began with silver coins in 2011, and the design has deliberately never changed, the same continuity strategy used by the Maple Leaf and Philharmonic to build recognition and liquidity. Gold proof versions appeared in 2017 in very limited mintages, 1,000 pieces for the 1/4 oz, alongside a four-coin proof set limited to 50. Bullion-grade gold coins followed in September 2020, completing the series across both metals.

The arrangement behind the coin is unusual. Armenia has no modern bullion minting facility, so the Central Bank of Armenia licenses production to LEV in Leipzig, which became part of the Geiger Edelmetalle group in 2018. Most sovereign coins are struck at the issuing country's own national mint; a German private mint producing a foreign sovereign coin is a rarity in the bullion world, and it gives the coin both governmental backing and German manufacturing quality.

The design carries real national weight. Armenia officially adopted Christianity in 301 AD, the first nation to do so, and the Ark narrative is woven into its identity. Mount Ararat, depicted on the reverse, actually stands in modern Turkey, yet it appears on Armenia's coat of arms and is clearly visible from Yerevan, making its presence on the coin a statement of enduring cultural claim. The wider series has been a volume success: cumulative silver mintage passed 5 million coins by 2022, with distribution across more than 20 countries.

Noah's Ark Gold vs Maple Leaf, Philharmonic, and Krugerrand

Against the Canadian Gold Maple Leaf, the two coins are equals on purity at .9999 fine. The Maple Leaf has stronger global liquidity and brand recognition; the Noah's Ark trades at lower premiums. A buyer holding to resale through major international dealers may value the Maple Leaf's recognition, while a cost-focused buyer keeps more metal for the money with the Armenian coin.

The Austrian Gold Philharmonic is the closest European rival: both are .9999 fine and EU VAT-exempt. The Philharmonic carries much higher mintages and continental brand recognition, and again the Noah's Ark positions itself as the lower-premium alternative produced to comparable German standards.

The South African Krugerrand takes the opposite approach: .9167 fine 22-carat gold with unmatched brand heritage stretching back to 1967. Each Krugerrand still contains its stated fine gold weight, but buyers who specifically want four-nines purity will prefer the Noah's Ark.

At the quarter-ounce weight specifically, UK buyers should also weigh the 1/4 oz gold coin field against the Gold Sovereign, which contains 0.2354 oz of fine gold at a similar price point and is CGT-exempt for UK residents, an advantage neither the Noah's Ark nor most foreign quarter-ounce coins can claim.