how rare are the matte finish coins? Any other varieties not listed in Peter Anthony's book? If you notice any die characteristics that match die varieties such as small date, large date, etc, I would be interested in knowing these die diagnostics. I can see there is a difference in the bottom steps of the Temple of Heaven in small date versus large date silver Pandas for some years which makes variety attribution quicker, easier, and more reliable. icoinbiz:smile
Having looked at quite a few 1989s I think it is safe to say that neither matte nor prooflike finish coins are scarce. There are other varieties waiting to be discovered. Joe Public on the Chinese Coin Forum has documented 5 kinds of 2003 silver Panda. It will be interesting to see how many develop a following among collectors. The one with the reflective bamboo forest is evidently quite scarce. Best wishes, Peter Anthony http://www.pandacollector.com
