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About the 1 oz Alpha & Omega Silver Coin
The 1 oz Alpha & Omega Silver Coin
The 1 oz Alpha & Omega silver coin is the inaugural release in The Jesus Collection, a faith-based series struck by Scottsdale Mint under licence from the Independent State of Samoa. Issued in 2021 as Samoan legal tender with a 2 Tala face value, it contains one troy ounce of .999 fine silver and stands apart from standard sovereign bullion in two ways: its subject matter and its charitable purpose.
The reverse depicts Jesus Christ in the Byzantine Christ Pantocrator tradition, holding an orb and flanked by the Greek letters Alpha and Omega, with inscriptions drawn from 2 Timothy 4:7-8. The design was inspired by a mosaic in the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis in Missouri, a building known for one of the largest mosaic collections in the world. The obverse carries the coat of arms of Samoa with the year, weight, purity, and face value.
The series runs under Scottsdale Mint's Coins for Charity programme: the entire profits from sales are donated to support children's education in the Democratic Republic of Congo through the charity partner Global Fingerprints, funding schools, safe drinking water, and transportation. Over $150,000 has been donated. Few bullion products direct profits to charity at all, which makes this a distinctive purchase for faith-motivated buyers.
The trade-off is cost and liquidity. The 1 oz silver version is limited to 5,000 pieces per finish variant, and collector finishes (proof-like, antiqued, and an unusual black rhodium proof) push premiums well above what a standard 1 oz silver bullion coin costs. This is a collector and faith-based product first, a pure silver investment second.
Alpha & Omega 1 oz Silver Specifications
| Attribute | 1 oz Silver |
|---|---|
| Purity | .999 fine silver |
| Weight | 1 troy oz (31.1035 g) |
| Diameter | 39 mm |
| Face value | 2 Tala (Samoa) |
| Edge | Reeded |
| Year of issue | 2021 |
| Mintage | 5,000 pieces per finish variant |
The 1 oz silver coin is offered in three finishes: proof-like, antiqued, and black rhodium proof. The black rhodium variant is unusual in bullion; the dark plating contrasts with the silver substrate for a dramatic appearance. Each coin ships in an acrylic capsule inside a decorated display case with a certificate of authenticity. No anti-counterfeiting technology is described on the coins themselves, so the packaging and certificate matter for resale.
The wider series spans gold (1 oz at 20 Tala face value, 1/5 oz at 5 Tala) and silver (1 oz at 2 Tala, 1/2 oz at 1 Tala). Face values are nominal: the Samoan Tala is roughly 0.37 USD, so denominations sit far below metal content.
Alpha & Omega Silver Coin Tax Treatment
As a silver coin, the Alpha & Omega does not benefit from the investment-gold exemptions that cover its gold counterpart in many countries.
- US: No federal sales tax; treatment depends on the buyer's state. Roughly 35 states exempt bullion, around 10 tax it, and a handful apply thresholds (California over $2,000, Florida over $500, New York, Louisiana, and Massachusetts over $1,000). Capital gains on bullion held over a year are taxed at up to the 28% collectibles rate. The coin is not IRA-eligible: Samoan coins are not on the IRS-approved list for precious metals IRAs.
- UK: Silver attracts 20% VAT on new purchases. As a foreign legal tender coin it carries no UK CGT exemption, unlike the 1 oz silver Britannia.
- Canada: Silver refined to 99.9% purity or better in coin form is GST/HST exempt, which this .999 coin satisfies.
- Australia: Investment-grade silver requires 99.9% purity for the GST exemption; the coin meets it at .999 fine, provided it is traded as bullion rather than as a numismatic piece. Collector coins attract 10% GST, and the collector finishes here may be treated that way.
- Singapore and New Zealand: Both exempt 99.9% pure silver from GST; the same investment-versus-collectible distinction applies.
- Hong Kong: No sales tax and no capital gains tax.
Alpha & Omega vs Other Faith-Themed Bullion
The closest comparisons are other religious-themed products rather than mainstream sovereign coins. The Ukraine Archangel Michael is another faith-themed bullion coin, but it carries a warrior-angel design rather than a depiction of Christ, and it has stronger secondary market liquidity than the low-mintage Alpha & Omega.
Within the same stable, Scottsdale Mint's Archangel Michael bars offer a complementary religious theme at lower premiums; the bars are straightforward bullion while the Alpha & Omega coins are higher-premium collector pieces. PAMP's faith series takes a third route: PAMP Suisse bars with religious motifs (Cross, Ka'Bah, Om) carry wider bullion-market recognition than a Samoan-issue coin.
Against standard sovereign silver, the calculation is simpler. Government 1 oz coins like the Maple Leaf or Philharmonic are cheaper over spot, easier to sell, and recognised by every dealer. The Alpha & Omega answers a different question: the 5,000-per-finish mintage gives genuine scarcity, the Christ Pantocrator design has no equivalent among major bullion coins, and the charitable component (all profits to children's causes in the Congo) exists almost nowhere else in the market. Buyers choosing it are paying for those attributes, not for the most efficient route to an ounce of silver.