A Day in the Spotlight
Quite often, our blogs are created either around a single design element that multiple coins share, or they’re about one customer who’s created a unique and interesting challenge coin program. But every so often, we get an order in that’s so impressive we think it would be a mistake not to share it with you.
Maybe they aren’t pushing the boundaries of what’s typical in the custom coin design world, but they do showcase what is possible when the different options we offer are utilized to their best effect. These coins are our Signature Spotlights.
Custom Challenge Coins for Marines Stationed in Kabul
It’ll come as no surprise to anyone that there are marines stationed in Afghanistan. When you factor in the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, it’s even less surprising that some of the country’s most highly trained soldiers are on site to offer protection. These brave men and women are the recipients of a very special challenge coin created by their commanding officer.
This coin pulls out all the stops. The entire coin (both sides) makes use of an intricate 3D mold to make sure each of the different elements are rendered in great detail. The translucent enamel adds a very unique look to each colorfill area. There are even small cutouts giving a little room between the trunks of the palm trees and the rest of the coin.
For other coins produced with the same type of design as this one, you might expect them to make use of a 3D mold for the scorpion and/or the eagle, but this coin’s use of 3D for the entire design means that even the smallest elements can be created in the most striking detail. Whether it’s the scorpion, the desert landscape, the Emblem of Afghanistan on the obverse coin face, or the eagle, marine corps emblem or the two knives on the reverse, every aspect gets the same level of detail due to the 3D mold.
Not many of our coins make use of translucent enamel for 100% of the colors on the coin, but this one shows just how impressive a coin with only translucent enamel can be. The translucent color is employed with truly exceptional skill on the palm tree fronds and the blue border of the coin. One of the interesting things about the translucent enamel is that the orange used on the sky turned out looking quite different than it did in the proof. Typically, our proofs are more of an exact match to what you get with your coin, but translucent paints can sometimes edit that. Because the paint has to interact with the metal plating, it can sometimes have a slightly different effect once created. Here, the orange enamel and the antique gold plating mix to create a more accurate color for the sky than we saw in the proof.
This coin also embodies one of the more interesting aspects of unit coins: a blending of elements from home with design elements from the country in which the soldiers are stationed. The Ameican flag is represented on one side, and on the other side, in the exact same spot on the coin, the Kabul flag colors are showcased. Furthermore, the eagle on the coin is not the American bald eagle, but the Golden Eagle which happens to be the national bird of Afghanistan. This blending of cultural elements is an example of the kind of learning and transference that happens when soldiers are stationed in a place for a long time. It also creates some of the best challenge coin designs.
Put Your Custom Coin in the Spotlight
With its balance of 3D designs, translucent colorfill and perfect blending of two different cultures, this coin for the U.S. Embassy in Kabul is the perfect candidate for our Signature Spotlights Series. It’s not reinventing the challenge coin, but it does make unique use of the upgrade options available to create a coin that’s truly one-of-a-kind.
If you think your custom coin is deserving of a spot in the Signature Spotlights series, let us know in the comments, or shoot us an email. And be sure to continue creating interesting and unique designs that catch our eye.
