BEIJING, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- China's Public Security Ministry Monday warned the public to beware of fake commemorative coins purportedly issued to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the People's Republic of China.

    The set of the fake coins contained two coins purportedly made of gold with face values of 100 and 150 yuan (14.6 and 21.9 U.S. dollars) and four coins said to be silver all with a face value of 10 yuan, said a notice on the ministry's website.

    The fakes were said to be issued by the People's Bank of China and distributed by the China Gold Coin Inc., but neither organization had issued any such coins, the notice said.

    The ministry said precious-metal commemorative coins should only be purchased through formal channels.

    On www. taobao.com on Monday, a seller from Hebei Province was selling a set of five silver coins with a price of 550 yuan (80 U.S. dollars).

    The advertisement said the coins, "with 99.9 percent purity", were issued by the People's Bank of China to mark the 60th founding anniversary.

    The coins showed previous Chinese leaders' portraits on one side and the Great Wall on the other.