Peter Anthony: The 1993 5 Yuan silver Panda is the first year of a brief, generally overlooked but very interesting series of coins. The coins can be found with lusters that vary from Cameo to Ultra Cameo. Some examples exhibit brilliant heavy frosting that contrasts nicely against the reflective fields. The authorized mintage of 28,888 makes the 1993 semi scarce but it is still not too difficult to find. Due to the modest mintage many collectors consider it to be a key, or semi-key coin in the 1/2 oz. silver series. As the first year the 1993 is a perfect cornerstone to build a set from. The 1993-1998 series is found in the NGC Registry.