2 oz The Awakening Series Silver Coin

The 2 oz Awakening Series Silver Round

The Awakening Series is a high-relief silver round programme from Sunshine Minting with anti-establishment and satirical financial themes. Each 2 oz piece is struck in .9999 fine silver (four nines purity) and individually edge-numbered, combining the collectibility of limited-edition art pieces with serious precious metal content. The series launched in 2021 with a 5 oz format before expanding to the more accessible 2 oz size in 2022.

Sunshine Minting, based in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, is one of the largest private mints in the United States and produces the blank planchets for the US Mint's American Silver Eagle programme. The Awakening rounds are struck by the same facility that manufactures America's flagship bullion coin, which speaks to the production quality despite these being privately minted rounds without legal tender status.

The series explores themes of corruption in financial institutions, the awakening of public awareness to monetary manipulation, and the historical concept of liberty. Each design carries the unifying reverse motif of an all-seeing eye atop a pyramid (echoing US dollar bill imagery) alongside the Navajo proverb: "You can't wake a person who is pretending to be asleep." The inscription "MDCCLXXVI" (1776 in Roman numerals) connects the American Revolution's liberty ideals to modern financial liberty themes.

Known releases in 2 oz format include Infinity, Ama-Gi Liberty, Welcome to Wall Street, and House of Cards. Each has a mintage limited to 20,000 pieces, compared to the initial 5 oz releases at just 2,000 per design. The 2 oz versions offer a more affordable entry point while retaining the high-relief finish that defines the series.

Awakening Series 2 oz Technical Details

Each round carries a unique sequential serial number on the edge, from 1 through the mintage cap. This provides traceability and confirms the piece is part of the limited production run. The high-relief striking creates pronounced depth in the design that is visually distinct from standard flat-strike bullion.

The reverse design is consistent across all releases: an enlarged all-seeing eye atop a pyramid with the inscriptions "THE AWAKENING", ".9999 SILVER", the weight, year, and the Navajo proverb. The obverse varies by release, with each design exploring a different aspect of financial corruption or liberty. "Ama-Gi" on the Liberty design is a Sumerian cuneiform word from approximately 2400 BC, considered the earliest known written expression of the concept of freedom, literally meaning "return to the mother" (release from debt bondage).

Tax Treatment for Privately Minted Silver Rounds

As a privately minted round without legal tender status, the Awakening Series receives straightforward tax treatment in most jurisdictions, based purely on its silver content and classification as a precious metal product. The absence of sovereign backing means no special exemptions apply beyond those available to all precious metals meeting purity thresholds.

• United States: The .9999 purity and manufacture by a COMEX-approved refiner (Sunshine Minting) make these rounds IRA-eligible for precious metals self-directed IRAs. State sales tax varies: approximately 35 states exempt precious metals, while others apply standard sales tax or threshold-based partial exemptions (California over $2,000, Florida over $500, New York over $1,000). Capital gains are taxed at the 28% collectibles rate for long-term holdings and as ordinary income for short-term.
• United Kingdom: Subject to 20% VAT as a silver product. No CGT exemption is available because these are not legal tender of any country. Import duty may also apply if purchased from US dealers and shipped to the UK. The margin scheme is available for pre-owned examples on the secondary market, reducing effective VAT to the dealer's margin only.
• European Union: Standard VAT applies at the buyer's country rate (rates vary from 17% in Luxembourg to 27% in Hungary). These do not qualify for the investment gold VAT exemption, and the margin scheme is only available on the secondary market for pre-owned pieces in countries that permit it (Germany, Netherlands, Spain).
• Canada: At .9999 purity, these exceed the 99.9% threshold for GST/HST exemption on precious metals in bar, ingot, coin, or wafer form.
• Australia: At .9999, these exceed the 99.9% silver purity threshold for GST exemption as investment-grade precious metals.
• Singapore: Qualifies as an Investment Precious Metal (0% GST) given .9999 purity exceeds the 99.9% silver threshold. Singapore has had this scheme since 2012.