Canadian coins, what an amazing value!

Let’s face it – Canada is not the most exciting neighbor to have – even Canadians will tell you that. Canadian coins, on the other hand, is very exciting.

Canada has a rich history – both pre-and post-mass-immigration. The First Nations culture of Canada is eons old and full of mystery, legend, and tradition.

Canada is the second largest country in the world by area – second only to Russia. Its natural environment is unsurpassed; from the Rocky Mountains, through the prairies, across the Great Lakes, and out to the rocky crags of the Atlantic coast, it teems with subjects and ideas.

The Royal Canadian Mint is known for its innovative designs – and it’s minting processes are world class. Canadian coins are renowned for their quality, purity, and inherent value. The stability of the Canadian Maple Leaf series of coins, for example, make them one of the most secure investments on the planet.

Amongst the subjects chosen for commemorative and special issue coins have been, ice hockey, the Olympic Games, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, scenes of Canada, birds of Canada, and of course, the iconic gold, silver, and platinum Maple Leaf series of bullion coins. In addition there was the “Big Maple Leaf” issue, and the Ottawa Mint sovereign.

Canucks are loonies …

The Canadian dollar, itself, is known within the country as the “Loonie.” This is because the one dollar coin which was minted in 1987 depicted the “Loon,” which is a type of water bird, native across Canada, and the familiar to all Canadians, With its striking black and white plumage and long thin beak.

After its release, the coin caught on and there have been a series of special commemorative versions of the coin issued periodically ever since.

The coin is unusual, because it is not round, but is 11-sided. This makes it unique amongst the world’s coins simply because of its shape.

America – particularly California – is known for the gold rush of 1849. What is less well known is that Canada had its own gold rush from 1896 to 1899. this took place in the Klondike region of Yukon territory in north-western Canada. Some hundred thousand people were drawn to the area by the lure of easy pickings. Of course, the truth was somewhat more brutal.

As with California, the Klondike gold rush set Canada up for decades of prosperity on the back of the value of the metal found. It was not easy, as it was down in California – wood had to be burned in huge quantities to melt the frozen ground. The Klondike Creeks had a surprise though – some were at least 15 times richer in gold than those in California. It is known, that in just two years, claim 29 on the Eldorado Creek realized $184 million worth of gold alone.

Maple syrup in precious metal

The Canadian Gold Maple Leaf bullion coin was introduced in 1979. The only gold bullion coin in existence at the time was the South African Krugerrand. Because of the boycotting of South Africa over its apartheid policies, the Krugerrand was very difficult to obtain. The Canadian Mint saw a gap in the market and persuaded the government to produce a 1 ounce, .999 pure, 24 karat coin, with a maple leaf design on the face, and a portrait of a 39-year-old Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse.

Since this initial release, the series has grown to include half-ounce, quarter-ounce, 10th of an ounce, 15th of an ounce, 20th of an ounce and a 1 gram version.

The gold used was so pure that dealers complained about the production quality of the coins as they showed handling marks very easily.

in 2004 Royal Canadian Mint released a series of six Gold Maple Leaf coins as a stand-alone collection. These consisted of a $0.50 piece, and coins of one dollar, five dollars, $10, $20 and $50 denomination.

This Gold Maple Leaf series is augmented by a Silver Maple Leaf series, a Platinum Maple Leaf series, and even a Palladium Maple Leaf series.

These Palladium Maple Leafs were minted from 2005 to 2007, in 2009, and again from 2015. They are made of one troy ounce of pure palladium of .9995 fine metal. Only 1,200 of the Palladium Canadian Big & Little Bear Constellations series were ever minted. In a clever twist, by the mint, there are four versions – making these even rarer – with just under 300 of each ever made.