There’s a Canadian coin that looks like it could be an antique silver dollar from 1939.
But it’s actually new and worth so much more than that.
The Royal Canadian Mint just released the Emanuel Hahn’s Original Sketch: Royal Visit — 5 oz. Fine Silver Coin.
This 99.99% pure silver coin is a reproduction of a rarely-seen Hahn original: his hand-drawn map of Canada design for medallions commemorating the 1939 royal visit of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.
You probably don’t know that Hahn, a German-born Canadian sculptor, designed the Bluenose and caribou that are still featured on Canada’s dimes and quarters today.
This new coin looks like an old silver dollar from the ’30s, but it’s worth more than that. It has a face value of $50.
The medallions that this coin is reminiscent of had a map of Canada tracing the Royal Tour itinerary on them.
It was a design suggestion from Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King!
This new coin features Hahn’s sketch of that design with more than 1,600 lines from the original drawing.
All of the lines are struck incuse to mimic the appearance of pencil marks on paper.
It also includes lettering guidelines and paper folds from Hahn’s sketch.
There is a ribbon at the top of the coin with “A MARI VSQUE AD MARE,” which is Canada’s official motto, and the Arms of Canada shield and “1939” below it.
The bottom of the coin features the lettering guidelines for an incorrect Latin inscription (“REGEM-ET-REGINAM-CANADA-SALVAT”) that was later fixed when the original medallions were struck.
It means “Canada salutes the King and Queen.”
Emanuel Hahn’s Original Sketch: Royal Visit – 5 oz. Fine Silver Coin.Royal Canadian Mint
This coin features an antique finish so that it looks aged.
It’s meant to reflect the design’s historical significance, the Mint said.
On the obverse side of the coin, there is an effigy of King George VI designed by Thomas Humphrey Paget.
That portrait of the monarch is what appeared on Canadian coins that were issued in 1939.
Obverse of Emanuel Hahn’s Original Sketch: Royal Visit – 5 oz. Fine Silver Coin.Royal Canadian Mint
There is a limited mintage of 1,350 of these Emanuel Hahn coins.
You won’t be able to find one in your change because these aren’t circulation coins.
If you want to get the coin, it costs $699.95 to buy online with the Royal Canadian Mint or at the Mint’s boutiques in Ottawa and Winnipeg.
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This article’s cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.