Called a “numismatic breakthrough” by its creators, a new coin produced by the Royal Canadian Mint’s research and development team is among the highlights of the September catalogue, which was issued nationwide on Sept. 3.
Working with the University of Ottawa’s Centre for Research in Photonics, the Mint created the 2020-dated $10 Fine silver coin, “Pulsating Maple Leaf,” which is engraved on the reverse with an array of sub-millimetre-scale mirrors in the shape of a maple leaf. Its miniature mirrors feature “precise dimensions and orientations,” according to the Mint, to “produce a design that appears to expand and contract with each tilt of the coin.”
The “Pulsating Maple Leaf” coin has a weight of 62.69 grams, a diameter of 50 millimetres and a mintage of 3,000 pieces.
The ‘Real Shapes’ series began this month with the release of the $50 Fine silver ‘Common Loon’ coin.
‘REAL SHAPES’
Another 2020-dated coin released as part of the September catalogue is the $50 Fine silver piece, “The Common Loon,” from the new “Real Shapes” series.
For the first time, the iconic loon designed by late artist Robert-Ralph Carmichael for Canada’s $1 circulation coin sheds its circular enclosure. The result is a uniquely shaped, pure silver and gold-plated coin struck in the silhouette of the loon floating on the still water of a lake, just as it appears on Canada’s “loonie.”
This is the first piece of a six-coin series that will bring to life the shapes of Canada’s classic circulation coin designs, including the beaver, schooner, caribou, coat of arms and polar bear, in more than three ounces of pure silver.
Each large-format coin has a $50 denomination, a weight of 100 grams and a mintage of 1,200 pieces.
The “Common Loon” coin has a diameter of 83.9 millimetres.
‘SNAPSHOT IN TIME’
A $250 Fine silver coin recreating the 1944 D-Day landing is also part of the Mint’s September catalogue.
In ultra-high relief, a 2019-dated $250 Fine silver coin, “D-Day: A Snapshot in Time,” was also issued this September to honour the Canadian heroes of the 1944 D-Day landings.
The coin is the product of a close collaboration between veteran, author and military collector W.E. Storey as well as Mint engraver Traian Georgescu.
Brought together by product manager Erica Maga, who wanted the Mint’s final tribute to Canada’s D-Day veterans to “capture the full scale of the operation,” they studied photographs of the historic landing to create an overhead view of the scene that unfolded at Bernières-sur-Mer, France, on June 6, 1944.
The “Snapshot in Time” coin has a weight of 1,006 grams, a diameter of 102.1 millimetres and a mintage of 400 pieces.
OTHER SEPTEMBER COINS
Other coins released as part of the September numismatic catalogue include:
- a $3 Fine silver coin, “Wine Tasting,” from the ongoing “Celebrating Canadian Fun and Festivities” series designed by Steve Hepburn;
- a $5 Fine silver coin, “Libra,” from the ongoing “Zodiac” series designed by Jori Van Der Linde;
- a colour-enhanced $10 Fine silver coin, “50th Anniversary of the Official Languages Act”;
- a $30 Fine silver coin, “Majestic Birds In Motion: Great Horned Owls,” designed by Pierre Leduc and featuring a multi-frame hologram emulating the motion of birds in flight;
- a $100 Fine silver coin, “The Roaring Lion,” the third piece of the “Yousuf Karsh” series celebrating the famous Canadian photographer’s work;
- a $500 Fine silver coin, “Brilliant Mastery in Canada,” which is a collaboration between artists Cathy Sabourin and Tony Bianco, who designed an ornate, five-kilogram coin showcasing Canada’s provincial and national coats of arms;
- a $200 pure gold coin, “40th Anniversary of the GML,” which is a two-ounce coin celebrating the signature sugar maple reverse design of one of the world’s most coveted pure gold bullion coins, the Gold Maple Leaf (or “GML”);
- a two-coin set, “Yin and Yang,” featuring Aries Cheung-designed pure gold and silver teardrop-shaped coins;
- the 2019 “Holiday Gift Set”;
- 2020-dated $1 Fine silver and $200 pure gold coins, “Peace Dollar,” a pair of high-relief designs from retired Mint Engraver Susan Taylor; and
- the 2020 Fine Silver Maple Leaf Fractional Set, featuring five pure silver coins ranging from one- to one-twentieth-ounce pieces.
For more information, visit mint.ca.