China 1981 8 grams Gold Rooster Coin
1981 was the Chinese Zodiac year of Rooster. Its commemorative coin of Rooster was officially issued in January of 1981.
On the obverse of the gold coin, there engraved “Beijing” in Chinese characters 
and the year of circulation. The famous White Pagoda of the Chinese ancient Imperial Beihai Park was selected as its architecture design. Beihai Park is situated in the north of Zhongnanhai, covering an area of more than seventy hectares (over 170 acres). It was once an Imperial Garden of the Liao, Jin, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties and has a history of more than 800 years. The White Pogoda which stands out on the top of the Qionghua Islet is the symbol of the Park. It was built in 1651 and was reconstructed twice in 1679 and 1731 in Qing Dynasty. This Lamaist pagoda, 35.9 meters (117.8 feet) high, about 72 meters in circumference, has lofty brick basis and inside which there were incantations written in Tibetan Language. The shape of the White Pogoda rooted in Religious architecture of Nepal. Therefore it is seen as an example of the Chinese traditional architecture combined with foreign arts.
On the reverse, there was a copy of the Rooster painted by Mr. Xu Beihong, a prominent Chinese modern artist, a famous educator and a social activist (1895 – 1956). Mr. Xu Beihong’s Rooster strides his head up between the sky and the earth, was full of energy. The picture was very suitable for recreation on a metal coin. Its unique style and the magic strokes that appeared on the coin give people an inspiration. This gold coin is not only the first one in the Chinese Zodiac Series, but also is the first one that adopts a valuable painting as its theme.
The picture of the Rooster on the gold coin was originated from the famous Chinese modern artist Xu Beihong.
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