The Royal Canadian Mint has become one of the world’s most renowned minting facilities, known for high purity standards and cutting edge anti-counterfeit technology. With the mint’s January 2nd anniversary approaching, we thought we’d take a look back through the history that has led to the mint’s favored reputation.
It all started on January 2, 1908, when Governor General Earl Grey activated the press to strike a fifty-cent piece, which became Canada’s first domestically made coin. The Countess Grey closed the ceremony by striking Canada’s first bronze cent. This marked the opening of the Ottawa branch of the British Royal Mint. Its location on Sussex Drive is still the site of the present-day mint.
In 1911, the mint opened its gold refinery in response to a period of rapid gold production in the Yukon and British Columbia. The new refinery was able to take rough gold and bring it up to coinage standards. By the year’s end, a record number of gold sovereigns were being produced by the mint. The mint also produced gold bars that allowed Britain the pay its debts to other countries.
In 1931, the mint passed from British hands to Canadian hands. The Royal Canadian Mint, a wholly Canadian institution, was officially born. The mint built a new refinery facility in 1936 that was designed to meet a variety of demands. It allowed for the refining of gold for mines and central banks around the globe. In fact, this refinery is still in operation today.
1953 was the first year the effigy of Queen Elizabeth II appeared on Canadian coins. The portrait has been updated several times throughout the years, but Her Majesty still remains a popular obverse design on many coins around the world.
The mint became a Crown Corporation in 1969, allowing it to operate as a profitable business as opposed to merely a supplier for Canada’s coins. In 1976, the mint opened a second branch in Winnipeg. The new facility produced all of Canada’s circulation coins, along with coins for over 60 other countries. In 1987, the Winnipeg branch created the first “Loonie,” an affectionate nickname for Canada’s one-dollar circulation coin. The bi-metallic two-dollar circulation coin (called the “Toonie”) was introduced in 1996.
The RCM continued to make strides in the coinage and bullion industry, wowing collectors and investors from every corner of the world. Some notable achievements include:
- Patenting a multi-ply plating technology in 1999 that increased the durability and brilliance of coins, while making the minting process more cost efficient.
- Being the world’s first refinery to achieve .99999 fine gold purity in 1999, after being the first to produce .9999 fine gold bullion coins in 1982.
- Issuing the first colored circulation coin in 2004, featuring a red poppy design that paid homage to Canadian soldiers.
- Becoming an official supporter of the Olympics in 2006, producing the athlete medals for the games and a line of Olympics circulation coins that included over 36 numismatic products.
- Earned a 2007 Guinness World Records certification for producing the largest coin in the world, a 100 kg .99999 fine Gold Maple Leaf with a $1 million face value.
To this day, the RCM’s Winnipeg branch continues to produce circulation coins for Canada and other countries in the high-tech, high-volume facility. Meanwhile, the mint’s Ottawa branch produces bullion coins, collector and commemorative coins, medals, and medallions.
The 2018 World Money Fair in Berlin is fast approaching, and the Royal Canadian Mint has a history of making big announcements at the annual event. We’ll let you know if any big news is announced this year, so keep an eye on our blog.
Happy anniversary to the Royal Canadian Mint, and wishing the fine establishment many more years of success!
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