p>Peter Anthony: The 1994 5 Yuan 1/20 oz. Large Date gold Panda is a Shanghai Mint product. Despite a large reported mintage this is a surprisingly hard-to-find coin today. This is partly because so many were used in jewelry. Another attrition factor was the melting pot as there were few collectors for this size Panda when it was new. This was also a time period when many other series of Chinese coins were in the spotlight and collectors, or even hoarders, for this coin were few. There are two major varieties of the 1994 gold Pandas: Large Date and Small Date. The most obvious difference between the two versions is that the numerals of the Small Date are more slender than those of the Large Date. Unlike, for instance, some of the 1993 Pandas the 1994 Panda Large and Small dates are not hard to tell apart. The 5 Yuan Large Dates are seen slightly less often than the 5 Yuan Small Dates.
Another characteristic of the 1994 5 Yuan Large Dates is that they were well-struck and often garner high grades. In fact more than 75% of those graded are MS-69 or MS-70. Unconserved 1994 Pandas often have red spots. The place most likely to show wear or rub is the Panda’s head.
The 1994 5 Yuan Large Date 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."