Lost Cities Silver

Mason Mint's Mythical Cities in Silver

The Lost Cities series from Mason Mint turns legendary civilisations into finely detailed silver rounds and bars. Each release depicts a different mythical or legendary city, starting with Atlantis and expanding to Asgard, with designs that fill the full surface area of the piece in high-relief engraving. The series is also listed under the name "Mythical Cities" by some dealers, though the products are identical regardless of which name appears on the listing.

Available in both 1 oz .999 silver rounds and 10 oz .999 silver bars, the Lost Cities line sits in the "art round" segment of the silver market. These are not legal tender coins and carry no face value. Buyers choosing these over generic rounds are paying a modest premium for the detailed die work and thematic coherence that ties the series together. Both brilliant uncirculated and antique finish variants exist, with the antique finish giving a deliberately aged, weathered appearance that suits the ancient mythology themes.

Mason Mint, based in Dade City, Florida, has built a reputation for intricate engraving that competes with longer-established private mints. The Lost Cities series is one of their signature offerings, and all entries are currently listed as sold out on the mint's own website, suggesting limited production runs. For silver stackers who want something more visually interesting than a generic buffalo or eagle round without crossing into numismatic pricing, the Lost Cities rounds fill that niche.

Lost Cities Specifications by Format

Both formats use laser-engraved dies that allow micro-printing of weight and purity information directly into the design. This level of detail serves a dual purpose: it adds visual complexity that collectors appreciate and makes economical counterfeiting more difficult. No assay card or certificate of authenticity is included as standard, so authentication relies on verifying weight, dimensions, and the characteristic fine engraving.

The 10 oz bar format is unusual for an art-focused silver product. Most series in this segment stick to 1 oz rounds, making the Lost Cities bars a distinctive option for buyers who want the design appeal at a larger weight class with lower per-ounce premiums. The bar format also offers practical stacking advantages that rounds do not.

The BU (Brilliant Uncirculated) finish presents the design with bright, reflective surfaces that highlight the fine detail of the laser engraving. The antique finish, by contrast, applies a deliberate patina to darken recessed areas, creating a weathered appearance appropriate to the mythological themes. The antique variants carry a small additional premium over the BU versions, reflecting the extra processing step and the collector preference for the aged aesthetic on ancient mythology subjects.

Tax Treatment for Lost Cities Silver

As private-mint rounds and bars with no legal tender status, the Lost Cities series receives no special tax treatment in any jurisdiction. The tax position is straightforward but generally unfavourable compared to sovereign-mint coins.

United States

Sales tax varies by state. Roughly 35 states exempt precious metals bullion from sales tax entirely, while approximately 10 states apply their full rate. Several states use threshold-based exemptions: California exempts purchases over $2,000, Florida over $500, and New York, Massachusetts, and Louisiana over $1,000. The Lost Cities rounds and bars are not IRA-eligible. US precious metals IRAs under Section 408(m) require either government-issued coins or bars from an accredited refiner meeting .9995 purity. Private-mint .999 rounds do not qualify on either count.

United Kingdom

Silver rounds and bars attract 20% VAT on purchase. They are not UK legal tender, so they also carry no CGT exemption. Capital gains tax applies on disposal at the individual's marginal rate (18% or 24%), subject to the annual CGT allowance of £3,000. The margin scheme does not apply to new products, only pre-owned silver.

Canada

Silver bullion refined to 99.9% purity or higher in bar, ingot, coin, or wafer form is exempt from GST/HST. The Lost Cities rounds at .999 purity meet this threshold, so no GST/HST applies.

Australia

Investment-grade silver (99.9% purity or higher) in forms commonly traded on commodity markets is GST-exempt. At .999 fineness, the Lost Cities rounds meet the purity requirement. Bar and round formats are recognised investment forms, so no GST applies on investment-grade purchases.

European Union

Silver bullion is subject to the standard VAT rate in most EU member states (17% to 27% depending on country). Unlike investment gold, there is no EU-wide silver VAT exemption. Some countries offer margin scheme treatment on pre-owned silver coins, but that does not apply to new private-mint rounds.

Lost Cities vs Other Art Rounds and Private Mint Silver

The Lost Cities series competes in a specific niche: detailed silver rounds that carry a small premium over generic bullion but remain well below numismatic pricing. The relevant comparison set includes other thematic private-mint series and generic rounds.

Against generic .999 rounds (buffalo designs, eagle knockoffs, blank rounds), the Lost Cities command a higher premium per ounce. The trade-off is the detailed laser-engraved design and the series collectibility. Buyers focused purely on accumulating silver weight at the lowest cost will find generic rounds cheaper, but the difference is typically modest for the 1 oz format.

The Scottsdale Mint Stacker series offers a different value proposition. Stackers are designed for efficient physical stacking with interlocking designs, prioritising utility over visual detail. They trade at low to moderate premiums and come in rounds and bars. The Lost Cities rounds offer more visual interest but less practical stacking utility.

Compared to sovereign-mint silver coins like the 1 oz Silver Maple Leaf or the 1 oz Silver Britannia, the Lost Cities rounds lack legal tender status, government-backed authentication, and the buyback liquidity that sovereign coins enjoy. Sovereign coins also carry security features (the RCM's Bullion DNA, the Royal Mint's surface animation) that private-mint products cannot match. The trade-off is price: sovereign coins carry higher premiums, and for UK buyers, the Britannia adds CGT exemption that no private-mint product offers.

The 10 oz bar format competes with products like the 10 oz Silver Britannia bar and various generic 10 oz bars. At this weight class, the per-ounce premium advantage of bars over coins becomes more pronounced, and the Lost Cities bar offers an aesthetic upgrade over plain stamped bars without a large price premium.