Peter Anthony: The 1983 1/20 oz. gold 5 Yuan Panda is one of the most intriguing coins in the series. It is the first year to have a 1/20 oz. Panda minted. The mintage for the 1/20 oz. is near to that of the 1983 1/10 oz. Panda but its population is just half as large. In all likelihood most of this coin’s mintage was wholesaled out to jewelers back in 1983 and is lost forever to collectors. The price of the 1983 1/20 oz. has risen to reflect its rarity and today it is one of the more expensive coins in its set. Perhaps because none of the other 1983 gold Pandas are super scarce most people assumed that was also true for the 1/20 oz. In fact it is a very scarce, difficult to find coin. It wasn’t until the publication of The Gold and Silver Panda Coin Buyer’s Guide in 2010 that many people understood this.

Almost all of the coins graded so far are MS-69s with some below that and a few above. So this coin doesn’t tend to have condition problems.

The 1983 1/20 oz. gold Panda is part of three NGC Registry sets: "Gold 1/20 Ounce Panda, 1983-Date, Mint State," "Gold 1/20 Ounce Panda, 1983-Date, Mint State (Incl. Varieties)" and "Gold 1/20 Ounce Panda, 1983-Date, Mint State and Proof"