Canadian Gold Maple Leaf

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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 1 Gold Maple Leaf 2 Platinum Maple Leaf 3 Silver Maple Leaf 4 Palladium Maple Leaf 5 Bimetallic Maple Leaf 6 Special issues 6.1 99.999% Gold Maple Leaf 6.2 Coloured Gold Maple Leaf 6.3 Hologram Gold Maple Leaf 6.4 Olympic Maple Leaf 6.5 Individual Releases 6.6 Privy Marked GML 7 Definition of finishes 8 References 9 See also 10 External links

[edit] Gold Maple Leaf

Years	Denominations	Purity	Obverse
1979–1982*	1 oz	999
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
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

[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

• Bullion - Royal Canadian Mint
• Monarchy - Royal Canadian Mint

[edit] See also

• Canadian Silver Maple Leaf
• Eagle (U.S. coin)
• Britannia coin
• Australian Gold Nugget
• Krugerrand
• Gold as an investment

[edit] External links

• Maple Leaves Get New Packaging
• Maple Leaf Bullion Coin
• Royal Canadian Mint's Official Website
• Royal Canadian Mint Act

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