December 10, 2015 – A four-leaf clover is a one-in-a-million find. If you ever come across one, consider yourself lucky. Created by Coin Invest trust on behalf of Palau, the real four-leaf clover embedded in the coin’s reverse renders every coin unique. Inspired by the year of issue, mintage of the two editions is limited to 2016 coins each.
Palau / Ounce of Luck / 5 Dollars / Silver .925 / 1 Ounce / 38.61 mm / Mintage: 2016.
Palau / Four-Leaf Clover in Gold 2016 / 1 Dollar / Gold .9999 / 1 g / 13.92 mm /
Mintage: 2016.
The series’ unchanged obverse shows the coat of arms of the issuing nation below an outrigger canoe. Above, the inscription REPUBLIC OF PALAU and, below, the nominal value.
The reverse of both editions is decorated with a real, inserted four-leaf clover. Engraved on the ornamented edge of the Ounce of Luck 2016 coin is the circumscription BETTER AN OUNCE OF LUCK THAN A POUND OF GOLD and the year of issue. Clover Leaf 2016 is decorated with small clover leaves around the edge and, apart from the year of issue, bears the inscription GOOD LUCK.
Four-leaf clover. Photograph: Phyzome / https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en
The four-leaf clover is a well-known symbol not only in Christian culture, where it was associated with the four evangelists and Jesus’ cross. The Celts also regarded it as a protective charm against evil spirits and a symbol of the four elements as well as the four cardinal directions. Farmers soon noticed that their seed yielded much better harvests if the fields had previously been grown over with clover. So they came to attribute magical powers to the small green plant. It was only one step away from becoming a lucky charm.
Expulsion from Paradise. Painting by Pier Francesco Mola, 1638.