The iconic “Voyageur” design that graced Canada’s $1 coin for more than half a century is now being issued in Fine silver and at nearly three times the size of the 1935 original issue.
Released today by the Royal Canadian Mint as part of its 11th catalogue of 2018, the new Voyageur is the first one-kilogram coin to feature the Emanuel Hahn design, which was replaced in 1987 by the current 11-sided loonie. The largest Voyageur ever issued, this 1,006-gram, 102.1-millimetre piece is one-and-a-half times bigger than the Mint’s 2018-dated five-ounce tribute.
The selectively gold-plated reverse features Hahn’s Voyageur design as seen on Canadian $1 coins issued between 1935 and 1986. A canoe traverses the centre of the image. Between the paddling voyageur and Indigenous guide are bundles of wrapped furs and provisions. Wind-swept pines rise up from an islet in the background while stylized vertical rays represent the aurora borealis in the sky.
The canoe, travellers and pines are all gold-plated, and the engraved relief includes the words “CANADA,” “DOLLAR” and an amended date of “2018.” The obverse features gold plating along the rim and on the effigy of Queen Elizabeth II by Susanna Blunt. There is a mintage of 350 pieces.
BATTLEFRONT SERIES
This November, the Mint is also issuing the eighth and final coin of its “First World War: Battlefront” series, a multi-year chronicle of Canada’s role on the battlefields of the Great War.
The reverse of the 2018 $20 Fine silver coin “Armistice of Compiègne” commemorates the centennial of the armistice signed near Compiègne in northern France, on Nov. 11, 1918. The iconic agreement ended the fighting across the Western Front.
The image is a gold-plated reproduction of the winged figure of Victory by British sculptor William McMillan (1887-1977), whose design graced the obverse of the Victory Medal issued within the British Empire in 1919. The full-length view of this classic-styled allegory finds Victory standing with her left arm raised, her right hand holding a palm branch; behind her, engraved rays representing hope for a peaceful future fill the field and heighten the luminous nature of the sculpted design.
The reverse includes the words “CANADA” engraved above the figure along with the double dates “1918 – 2018” marking the centennial, and the bilingual “title” of this final chapter in the story of Canada on the battlefields of the First World War.
Like all Canadian coins minted between 1914 and 1918, the coins in this retrospective series feature the Sir E. B. MacKennal effigy of King George V, which is selectively gold-plated on the new issue.
This coin has a weight of 31.39 grams; a 38-mm diameter; and a mintage of 10,000 pieces.
HOLIDAY WREATH
This year’s holiday coin is a 2019 $20 Fine silver piece, “Holiday Wreath,” which features a colourful Murano glass wreath on the engraved reverse. Handcrafted by Italian glassmakers using centuries-old techniques, no two Murano glass pieces are exactly alike. Designed by artist Marie-Élaine Cusson, the reverse recalls an old-fashioned Christmas. A roaring fire in the stone-lined fireplace conjures a feeling of warmth and coziness while a wreath “hangs” on the brick wall above the mantle.
Uniquely handcrafted by glassmakers Giorgio and Bernardino Vio, of Murano, Italy, the bright green wreath complements the coloured tree, whose traditional mix of decorations, flowers, bows and ribbon garland culminate in a star-shaped topper. Nearby are brightly wrapped gifts and a wooden rocking horse with a bow.
This coin has a weight of 31.39 grams; a 38-mm diameter; and a mintage of 5,000 pieces.
OTHER NOVEMBER COINS
Other coins issued today as part of the Mint’s latest numismatic catalogue include:
- a 2018 $3 Fine silver coin, “Freezing Moon,” from the 13 Teachings from Grandmother Moon series;
- a 2018 $5 Fine silver coin celebrating the month of December as part of the ongoing Birthstones series;
- a 2018 $20 Fine silver coin and a $200 pure gold coin, “The 1908 Sovereign – 110th Anniversary of the Royal Canadian Mint,” both of which feature the effigy of King Edward VII, the reigning monarch depicted on the first gold coin ever struck by the Mint (then the Ottawa branch of the Royal Mint);
- the Mint’s third repoussé-inspired coin, a 2018 $25 Fine silver piece dubbed “Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II: Matriarch of the Royal Family,” which depicts the Queen at the age of her sapphire jubilee;
- the 2018 Fine silver puzzle coin set, “Connecting Canadian History (1866-1916),” which includes 14 coins that piece together to tell the story of the first 50 years of the Dominion of Canada;
- the 2018 four-coin “State of the Art” set, which is the first Mint-struck set to feature one coin from each business line:
- numismatics (two-ounce 1936 Dot 10-cent coin);
- bullion (one-ounce Silver Maple Leaf);
- Canadian circulation ($2 coin); and
- foreign circulation (50-cent Fiji coin);
- the first of 12 coins, this for Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20), whose constellation is framed by 20 Swarovski crystals, from the 2019 $5 Fine silver Zodiac series;
- a 2019 $8 Fine silver coin, “Brilliant Cherry Blossoms: A Gift of Beauty”;
- a 2019 $10 Fine silver coin, “Lunar Year of the Pig”;
- a 2019 $10 Fine silver coin, “Silver Maple Leaf,” which celebrates the 30th anniversary of Canada’s world-famous silver bullion coin;
- a 2019 $20 Fine silver coin, “Mystical Snow Day”;
- a 2019 $20 Fine silver coin, “Reflections: Bald Eagle”;
- the second coin in this year’s Canadian Canopy series, a 2019 $30 Fine silver coin, “The Canada Goose”;
- a 2019 $30 Fine silver coin, “The Wily Wolf”;
- a 2019 $30 Fine silver coin, “The Bighorn Sheep,” which is the Mint’s third “Zentangle” coin;
- a 2019 $50 Fine silver coin, “Celebrating Canada’s Icons”;
- a 2019 $50 Fine silver coin, “Polar Bears: Mother and Cub,” which uses “virtual minting” to shape the coin’s edge and surface in a way that complements the glacial theme;
- a 2019 $50 Fine silver coin, “The Bumble Bee and the Bloom,” which features a moveable gold-plated bee that circles around the rose gold-plated petals of a wild rose;
- a 2019 $200 pure gold coin, “Atlantic Puffins”;
- a 2019 $500 pure gold coin, “Birds of Prey: The Golden Eagle,” which is crafted from five ounces of 99.99 per cent gold;
- a 2019 $2,500 pure gold coin, “40th Anniversary of the GML,” which is the first Mint-struck one-kilogram coin to feature radial lines;
- a 2019 five-ounce Fine silver coin from the Big Coin series, this celebrating the 25-cent piece; and
- a 2019 $1 Fine silver coin, “The Bat Signal,” which was produced by the Mint under the authority of the Central Bank of Barbados.
For more information, visit mint.ca.