CANADA CELEBRATES BLUENOSE WITH
2021 DIMES
Canada
celebrated the 100th anniversary of the schooner Bluenose with
three 2021 dimes. Bluenose was launched as a fishing and
racing schooner in 1921. Bluenose had long been a nickname
for Nova Scotians. The ship repeatedly won the International
Fisherman's Cup and other important competitions.
In 1937, when she was at the height of her fame, she was placed on the
reverse of the Canadian dime. It was the year she won her
final race. Fishing schooners were replaced by motorized
trawlers. Bluenose was motorized and in 1942 was stripped of
her masts and rigging and converted to a costal freighter working in
the Caribbean. In 1946, while carrying a load of bananas, she
struck a reef in Haiti and was abandoned. The three versions
of the 2021 Bluenose dime include one with the traditional design with
the dates 1921 2021, one with an updated version showing the ship
cutting through the waves, and a colorized version showing the ship
cutting through the waves. All three have the Susanna Blunt portrait of
Queen Elizabeth on the obverse.CANADA 2021 KLONDIKE DOLLARS
Canada
celebrated the 125th anniversary of the Klondike Gold Rush with
circulating color and uncolored 1 Dollar coins. Both coins have the
same design. The design depicts the four who discovered gold at Rabbit
Creek in August 1896, panning for gold: Keish (Skookum Jim Mason), K̲áa
Goox̱ (Dawson Charlie), Shaaw Tláa (Kate Carmack) and her husband,
George Carmack. The discovery had a major economic, social and
environmental impact on the isolated region. On a hillside is
an image representing the Moosehide Gathering place, where the Tr’ondëk
Hwëch’in First Nation people relocated when they were displaced by the
influx of gold rushers. The color version of the coin depicts
the Moosehide image in red. Above is the Canadian Maple Leaf within an
image of the sun. The portrait of Queen Elizabeth by Canadian
artist Susanna Blunt is on the obverse.
Canada
issued two circulating bi-metallic two-dollar coins in 2021 to
commemorate the 100th anniversary of the discovery of
insulin. The collaboration of Canadian scientist Frederick
Banting, Charles Best, James Collip and John Macleod led to the
isolation and purification of insulin, which offered a life-saving
treatment to those with diabetes. The designs of the coins include an
insulin monomer, scientific instruments used in the early formulation
of insulin (vial, mortar and pestle, and Erlenmeyer flask) overlaid on
a maple leaf, as well as red blood cells, glucose, and insulin
molecules. Two versions of the coin were issued,
one with the insulin monomer in blue, the color used to raise diabetes
awareness, the other without color. The obverse features the
Susanna Blunt portrait of Queen Elizabeth II. 
Canada
commemorated the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II with
colored and un-colored versions of this 2020 2 Dollar coin.
The coins have similar reverse designs which were adapted from Canada's World War II era Victory 5 cent
coins. The designs feature a torch and a large "V"
in the center. On the outer ring is the inscription "WE WIN WHEN WE
WORK WILLINGLY" in Morse code and the words Victory and
Remember are in
English and French. At the top are two shifting images of a
maple leaf within the line pattern. The obverse depicts the
portrait of Queen Elizabeth II. 
Canada
recently released a circulating multi-color, bi-metallic 2 Dollar coin
to celebrate Haida art and culture. Haida art is a
distinctive art form created by tribes of north-western
Canada. It includes a range of objects including Totem Poles,
stone carving, baskets, blankets and drawings. The
reverse of this 2020 dated coin features "Xhuwaji, Haida Grizzly
Bear". The red, black and white design was originally painted
by renowned Haida artist Bill Reid (Iljuwas) on a ceremonial drum in
1988. Reid was a gifted artist, writer and broadcaster who
championed Haida causes. The coin also celebrates the 100th anniversary
of the artist's birth. The obverse depicts the portrait of Queen
Elizabeth II by Canadian artist Susanna Blunt. 
Canada
honored the 100th Anniversary of the World War I Armistice with two
versions of circulating bi-metallic 2 Dollar coins: uncolored and
colored. Both versions have similar designs. In the
center brass plated core is a soldier's helmet, beneath it is the word "ARMISTICE" a
remembrance poppy. The colored version of the coin features
the poppy in red. Maple leaves and poppies are features in
the nickel-plated outer rim, along with the words "REMEMBER" in
English and French ("SOUVENIR")
and the date 2018. The Susanna Blunt portrait of Queen
Elizabeth is on the obverse of the 28mm coin.
Canada
issued a circulating commemorative silver dollar in 1964 to commemorate
the 100th anniversary of the Charlottetown and Quebec
Conferences. The conferences laid the groundwork for the
establishment of the Dominion of Canada in 1867. The Charlottetown
Conference was held in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island in September
1864. Initially the conference was to discuss a union of the Maritime
colonies, but was expanded to include the Province of Canada as
well. Britain encouraged the union, hoping the colonies would
become less dependent on the Crown and provide for greater economic and
military power for the region in light of the American Civil
War. A circus came to Charlottetown the same week,
the first one to visit in over 20 years. Folks were much more
interested in the circus than politics. Workers left their
jobs and folks from all over the island came into town which made
accommodations difficult for the delegates. A second
conference was held in Quebec the following month. The Quebec
Conference created 72 Resolutions which laid the foundation for
unifying the colonies. The resolutions covered a wide range
of issues, from governmental powers to building
railroads. The coin depicts young Queen Elizabeth
on the obverse. The reverse features an emblem incorporating
the French fleur-de-lis, the Irish shamrock, the Scottish thistle, and
the English rose representing the main nationalities that settled
Canada. Around it is the legend "CHARLOTTETOWN • QUÉBEC",
the dates "1864"
and "1964".
The 36mm coin is struck in .800 fine silver and contains .6
troy ounces of silver. 
During
1942, because nickel was needed for the war effort, Canada replaced the
nickel 5 cent coin with one made of a brass alloy called Tombac. The
new coins were 12-sided, making them even more distinctive.
The new coins kept the beaver reverse and King George VI that
was on the previous coins. The coins were struck only a single year. On
January 1, 1943 Canada released a new design for their 5-cent coin to
promote the war effort of World War II. The reverse featured a large
"V" behind a burning torch. The V both stood for Victory and
the denomination in Roman numerals). Even though the coin is
not made of nickel, it is often referred to as Canada's V
Nickel. Around the rim on the side with the "V" is the inscription in Morse code
which reads "WE WIN WHEN
WE WORK WILLINGLY". Like the 1942 issue, the
coin is made of Tombac and depictes King George VI on the
obverse. It too was struck only a single year. In
1944 the Tombac allow was replaced with chrome-plated steel.
Meat
was rationed in Canada during World War II. Families received
a ration booklet which allowed them to purchase a limited quantity of
rationed goods, including tea, coffee, sugar, butter, booze and meat
each week. Each weekly meat ration coupon was good for 2
pounds of meat. The problem was that many did not have
refrigeration at home, so they would either forfeit the whole coupon
for a lesser amount of meat, or buy their full amount and risk it going
bad before it could be used. In 1945 the Canadian government
finally wised up and issued meat ration tokens that were good for a
lesser quantity of meat. Each token was worth 1/8 of a meat ration
coupon (1/4 pound of meat), so if someone bought less than their full
ration of meat the tokens could be given out to be used
later. If one bought half their weekly ration of meat, they
would receive four tokens for later use. The 22mm blue token
is struck on a heavy blue cardboard with a center hole. Both sides have
the same design with the words "CANADA
- RATION MEAT - VIANDE" and two
maple leaves. SCARCE NEWFOUNDLAND 20 CENT PIECE
The Newfoundland 20 Cent piece of George V was struck only a single
year: 1912. It was also the last 20 Cent piece ever struck
for Newfoundland. At the time Newfoundland was a
self-governing Dominion within the British Empire. It did not
become a Canadian province until 1949. The king is on the obverse of
the coin. The denomination and date are on the reverse. The
23.2mm coin is struck in sterling silver and contains .1402 troy ounces
of silver. It has a mintage of only 350,000 pieces, most of
which have been melted. It is a scarce pre-World War I coin of
Newfoundland.
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