Canadian Gold Maple Leaf

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Reverse of a 1 oz Gold Canadian Maple Leaf bullion coin.
Reverse of a 1 oz Gold Canadian Maple Leaf bullion coin.

The Canadian Gold Maple Leaf is the official bullion gold coin of Canada and is produced by the Royal Canadian Mint. The brainchild of Walter Ott, it is the one of the purest gold coins of regular issue in the world, with a gold content of .9999 millesimal fineness (24 carats). That is, it contains virtually no base metals at all – only gold exclusively from gold mines in Canada.

The coin was first introduced in 1979. At that time, the only available bullion coin was the Krugerrand, which was not widely available because of an economic boycott of apartheid-era South Africa. Coins minted between 1979 and 1981 have gold content of .999.

The coin is offered in 1/20 oz, 1/10 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/2 oz, and 1 oz denominations and is guaranteed to contain the stated amount (in troy ounces) of .9999 fine gold (24 carat). The coins have legal tender status in Canada, but as is often the case with bullion coins, the face values of these coins (C$1, C$5, C$10, C$20 and C$50) are purely symbolic and are much lower than their market value.

The 1/20, 1/10, 1/4, and 1/2 troy oz coins are identical in design to the 1 troy oz coin except for the markings on the obverse and reverse sides that indicate the weight and face value of the coin. In 1994, 1/15 oz ($2.00 face value) gold and platinum coins were issued, possibly for use in jewelry. They were not very successful, and so 1994 remains the only year in which 1/15 oz gold and platinum bullion coins were produced.

Starting in 1988, Maple Leaf coins have also been struck in .9995-fine platinum, having the same weights and face values as the gold coins. Since 1988, a one ounce .9999-fine silver Maple Leaf has also been struck, with a face value of 5 dollars. In 2005, a .9995-fine palladium Maple Leaf 1 oz coin was introduced, with a face value of 50 dollars. The palladium Maple Leaf is subject to the federal GST in Canada.

On May 3, 2007, the Royal Canadian Mint unveiled a Gold Maple Leaf coin with a face value of One Million Dollars,[1] though the gold content was worth over $2 million at the time. It measures 50 cm in diameter by 3 cm thick and weighs 100 kilograms, with a purity of 99.999%. The artist is Stanley Witten. The coin is mainly a promotional product to give the mint a higher international profile.[1] The 100-kilogram coin was conceived as a one-off showpiece to promote the mint's new line of 99.999 per cent pure one ounce Gold Maple Leaf bullion coins[1] but after several interested buyers came forward the mint announced it would manufacture them as ordered and sell them for between $2.5 million and $3 million. As of May 3 2007 there were five confirmed orders.[2]

All denominations are in troy ounces.

Contents

[edit] Gold Maple Leaf

Years Denominations Purity Obverse
1979–1982* 1 oz 999 39-year-old Queen Elizabeth II
1982*–1985 1 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz 9999
1986–1989 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz 9999
1990–1992 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz 9999 64-year-old Queen Elizabeth II
1993 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz, 1/20 oz 9999
1994 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz, 1/15 oz, 1/20 oz 9999
1995–2004 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz, 1/20 oz 9999
2005–present 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz, 1/20 oz 9999
  • .9999 1982 Gold Maple Leafs started minting in November. Thus, most of the 1982 Gold Maple Leafs are .999 fine.

[edit] Platinum Maple Leaf

Years Denominations Purity Obverse
1988–1989 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz 9995 39-year-old Queen
1990–1992 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz 9995 64-year-old Queen
1993 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz, 1/20 oz 9995
1994 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz, 1/15 oz, 1/20 oz 9995
1995–1999 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz, 1/20 oz 9995
2002 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/10 oz, 1/20 oz 9995

Note: No platinum maple leafs have been minted since 2002.

[edit] Silver Maple Leaf

Main article: Canadian Silver Maple Leaf
Years Denominations Purity Obverse
1988–1989 1 oz 9999 39-year-old Queen
1990–2004 1 oz 9999 64-year-old Queen
2005–present 1 oz 9999 79-year-old Queen

[edit] Palladium Maple Leaf

Available in a one-ounce format, the Palladium coin presented an alternative to the Platinum Maple Leaf, which had been discontinued in 1999.

During the testing process for the Palladium coin, coins were tested on two different Palladium blanks. These blanks had been identified as Lot "A" and Lot "B". From these blanks, 290 test coins were struck. Said coins were struck with a Mint Mark to attest to their authenticity. All test coins struck from Lot A were identified with an "A" Mint Mark, and all test coins struck from Lot B were given a "B" Mint Mark. These coins were available through a draw held by the Royal Canadian Mint. Their face value was $50 each and the issue price for both coins were $1,299.95.

Year Denomination Purity Obverse
2005-present 1 oz .9995 palladium 79-year-old Queen

[edit] Bimetallic Maple Leaf

As a way of commemorating 25 years as an industry leader in bullion coins, the Royal Canadian Mint created a unique six coin set. It was a new bimetallic maple leaf set in bullion finish (a brilliant relief against a parallel lined background). The six-coin set was the first ever to include the 1/25 oz. Maple Leaf denomination. Each coin included a double-date of 1979-2004, and the 1 ounce coin featured a commemorative privy mark. All coins were packaged in a black leather presentation case with a black velour insert along with a certificate of authenticity. [3]

Coin Specifications
Year Theme Face Value Size Composition Weight Diameter
Ring Core
2004 25th Anniversary, Gold Maple Leaf
$0.50 1/25 ounce .9999 silver .9999 gold 1.270 16.00
$1.00 1/20 ounce 1.581 18.03
$5.00 1/10 ounce 3.136 20.00
$10.00 1/4 ounce 7.802 25.00
$20.00 1/2 ounce 15.589 30.00
$50.00 1 ounce 31.650 36.07

Other Details

Year Theme Artist Mintage Issue Price Finish
2004 25th Anniversary, Gold Maple Leaf RCM Engravers 801 $2,495.95 Bullion

[edit] Special issues

$1M 100kg gold coin
$1M 100kg gold coin

[edit] 99.999% Gold Maple Leaf

Year Theme Artist Mintage Issue Price Special Notes
2007 Two Hundred Dollar Coin Stanley Witten N/A N/A Purest gold coin produced by RCM
2007 One Million Dollar Coin Stanley Witten 5 (as of May/2007) N/A The coin weighs 100 kilograms

[edit] Coloured Gold Maple Leaf

Year Theme Artist Mintage Issue Price Special Notes
1999 20th Anniversary of the GML Walter Ott, RCM Engravers 13,025 N/A These are the first coloured coins that the Royal Canadian Mint has ever produced [4]

[edit] Hologram Gold Maple Leaf

Year Theme Artist Mintage Issue Price Special Notes
1999 GML Hologram Set Walter Ott, RCM Engravers 500 $1995.00 First Coins for RCM to feature a hologram
2001 GML Hologram Set Walter Ott, RCM Engravers 600 $1995.00 N/A
2001 $10 GML Hologram Walter Ott, RCM Engravers 14,614 $195.00 1/4 ounce

[edit] Olympic Maple Leaf

  • The Royal Canadian Mint and the International Olympic Committee have reached an agreement on Olympic Gold and Silver Maple Leaf coins. The announcement was made on August 3, 2007 and the agreement allows the RCM to strike bullion coins with the emblems of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games. [5] The issue will consist of two coins: one Gold Maple Leaf coin and a Canadian Silver Maple Leaf coin and both coins will feature the date of 2008. The new agreement means that the RCM is now selling Olympic coins through all of its major business lines: bullion, circulation, numismatics. [6]

[edit] Individual Releases

Year Theme Artist Mintage Issue Price Special Notes
1989 10th Anniversary Coin Walter Ott 6,817 Bullion Value Packaged in a wooden box
1997 125th Anniversary of the RCMP Ago Aarand 12,913 $310.00 US Funds Guaranteed value of $310 US until Jan 1, 2000
2004 25th Anniversary of Gold Maple Leaf Walter Ott 10,000 Bullion Value Introduced at ANA World’s Fair of Money in Pittsburgh
2007 Gold Maple Leaf Test Bullion Coin 99.999% Pure Stan Witten 500 $1,899.95 Available to collectors who enter draw-to-buy

[edit] Privy Marked GML

Year Privy Mark Denomination Size Mintage Special Notes
1997 Family Five Dollars 1/10 oz. 100,730 Made for Dillon Gage
1998 Eagles Five Dollars 1/10 oz. 51,440 Made for Dillon Gage
2000 Expo Hanover Ten Dollars 1/4 oz. N/A N/A
2001 Basle Coin Fair Ten Dollars 1/4 oz. 750 N/A
2001 Viking N/A 1 oz., ½ oz., 1/4 oz., 1/10 oz., 1/20 oz. 850 Issued as a five coin set
2005 Liberation Ten Dollars 1/4 oz. 1,000 Made for Royal Dutch Mint

[edit] Definition of finishes

Bullion
Brilliant relief against a parallel lined background.
Proof
Frosted relief against a mirror background
Specimen
Brilliant relief on a satin background.

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c "Royal Canadian Mint introduces world's first 100-kilogram pure gold coin", Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, May 3, 2007. Retrieved on 2008-03-20. 
  2. ^ "Finally! A 100-kg Canadian gold coin", CBC News, May 3, 2007. 
  3. ^ Charlton Standard Catalogue of Canadian Coins, 60th Edition, p.442
  4. ^ Charlton Standard Catalogue of Canadian Coins, 60th Edition, p.440
  5. ^ “Maples will sport Olympic Rings”, Bret Evans, Canadian Coin News, September 4 to September 17, 2007
  6. ^ “Maples will sport Olympic Rings”, Bret Evans, Canadian Coin News, September 4 to September 17, 2007

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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