1 oz Guardian Lions Silver Coin

The 1 oz Guardian Lions Double Pixiu Silver Coin

The Guardian Lions, also marketed as the Double Pixiu, is a 2020 Perth Mint bullion coin struck in .9999 fine silver with a mintage capped at 50,000. It belongs to the mint's programme of Asian-culture-themed bullion alongside the Lunar series and Dragon and Phoenix, and it was conceived for the East Asian market from the outset: initial distribution ran exclusively through the Hong Kong dealer LPM, an unusual arrangement for Perth Mint that signalled a deliberate Asia-first strategy.

The mintage is the key to its market position. At 50,000 coins, the run is low enough to create scarcity premiums but high enough for reasonable dealer availability, sitting between mass bullion and true limited editions. Compare Perth Mint's own Lunar series, where mintages run past 300,000. Buyers get Australian legal tender under the Currency Act 1965, the four-nines purity Perth Mint applies across its bullion range, and a micro-laser-engraved security mark, while paying more per ounce than mainstream sovereign coins.

The design itself, by Perth Mint artist Ing Ing Jong, shows two Pixiu, mythical Chinese creatures with a dragon's head and lion's body, seated on a mound of traditional Chinese coins. The male grasps an embroidered ball, symbolising supremacy over the world; the female restrains a playful cub, symbolising nurture and protection. A matching 1 oz Guardian Lions gold coin followed in 2021 with a mintage of just 5,000.

Guardian Lions Silver Coin Specifications

The reverse carries the Double Pixiu design within an ornamental oriental border; the obverse bears the Jody Clark effigy of Queen Elizabeth II. Security rests on three layers: a micro-laser-engraved mark visible only under magnification, the Perth Mint "P" mintmark, and legal tender status that puts an Australian government guarantee behind the weight and purity. The .9999 fineness also makes specific gravity testing straightforward.

The 2020 release included a companion 2 oz high-relief proof in a wooden box, limited to 1,000 pieces, and aftermarket gilded variants exist from third-party modifiers who use genuine Perth Mint coins as blanks; these are not mint products. No 2022 or later bullion releases have been confirmed, so the series appears to be a short run, which matters for buyers betting on its collectibility.

Guardian Lions Silver Tax Treatment by Country

As Australian legal tender in four-nines silver, the coin clears the strictest purity thresholds worldwide.

• Australia: GST-free as investment-grade silver, which the ATO defines at 99.9%+ purity in a form tradeable on commodity markets. CGT applies on disposal, with the 50% discount for individuals holding longer than 12 months.
• Hong Kong and Singapore: The coin's primary target markets, and its most tax-friendly ones. Hong Kong levies no sales tax or CGT of any kind. Singapore exempts qualifying silver coins of 99.9%+ purity from GST and has no capital gains tax.
• US: No federal sales tax, with roughly 35 states exempting bullion. The .9999 purity exceeds the 99.9% IRA requirement for silver, so the coin is IRA-eligible. Long-term gains are taxed at the collectibles rate of up to 28%.
• UK: 20% VAT on new silver, and no CGT exemption, since only UK legal tender coins qualify; this coin is Australian legal tender.
• Canada: GST/HST exempt as silver above the 99.9% federal threshold.
• New Zealand: GST-exempt, with silver requiring 99.9%+ purity, and no formal capital gains tax.
• EU: Full local VAT applies to new silver coins, typically 17-27% by country.

The Pixiu and the Guardian Lion Tradition

The Pixiu, also called Pi Yao and imprecisely known in the West as Foo Dogs, is a hybrid creature of Chinese mythology with the head of a dragon and the body of a lion. Its association with wealth comes from a memorably strange legend: the Pixiu violated a law of Heaven and was punished by the Jade Emperor, who sealed its rectum permanently. A creature that could devour gold, silver, and jewels but never expel them became the natural symbol of wealth acquisition and preservation, which is precisely why it appeals to bullion buyers.

Guardian lions themselves have a much longer pedigree. Originating in Chinese Buddhism, paired stone lions have stood at the entrances of palaces, temples, tombs, and homes for centuries as protective guardians, the male with a ball guarding the structure, the female with a cub protecting those who dwell inside. Ing Ing Jong's coin design reproduces this pairing faithfully, down to the embroidered ball and the cub, and the "Double Pixiu" name distinguishes it from single-Pixiu designs: the pair represents both attracting wealth and protecting it.

The series itself is recent and brief. The silver bullion coin and a 2 oz high-relief proof appeared in 2020; gold versions followed in 2021, including a 2 oz proof limited to 250 pieces, one of the more exclusive modern Perth Mint issues. Both years carry the Jody Clark effigy of Queen Elizabeth II, placing the whole series before the King Charles III transition. With no confirmed releases since, the Guardian Lions stands as a self-contained two-year programme.

Guardian Lions vs Lunar, Panda, and Mainstream Silver

Within Perth Mint's own Asian-themed stable, the closest comparison is the Lunar Series III. The Lunar offers the same .9999 silver and legal tender status with annual design changes, a broad weight range, and mintages of 300,000 or more, which keeps premiums lower and liquidity higher. The Guardian Lions, at 50,000 coins and no continuing series, is the more exclusive pick; the Dragon and Phoenix series, which ran 2017 to 2020, occupied similar ground. Buyers choosing between them are weighing the Lunar's ongoing collector ecosystem against the Pixiu's one-off scarcity.

Against the Chinese Silver Panda, the trade-off is recognition. The Silver Panda has far greater global recognition and liquidity, with the cultural symbolism handled by China's own mint; the Guardian Lions targets a more specialised collector-investor niche and will take longer to sell, particularly outside Asia and the US dealer network.

Against mainstream sovereign bullion such as the 1 oz Silver Kangaroo or Maple Leaf, the Guardian Lions is simply a different product class. The big coins are struck in the millions and priced for accumulation; the Pixiu carries a scarcity premium that buys low mintage, a certificate of authenticity, and a 40.9mm canvas for a genuinely distinctive design. For stacking ounces it is the wrong tool. For a small allocation to low-mintage sovereign silver with strong cultural resonance in the world's largest gold-buying region, it is one of the more interesting recent options.