One of the most recognisable symbols in the world, the Canadian Maple Leaf, immediately evokes the North American nation of Canada. It’s appeared on countless coins over the last few decades, including huge numbers of precious metal ones issued by the Royal Canadian Mint.

The RCM have been experimenting with fresh implementations of the symbol for many years and with varying degrees of success, but now European coin producer Modern Numismatics International (MNI) have tried something really different and issued a coin for Canada actually shaped like the leaf. It’s a clever piece and so obvious an idea you wonder why nobody has done it before. At an ounce in weight and 38mm in diameter, it’s spec is similar to a standard bullion coin. Carrying the Susanna Blunt effigy of Queen Elizabeth II, it’s struck for MNI by the Royal Canadian Mint, a mint they’re an active European distributor for. Mintage is set at a reasonably high 15,000 and it’s supplied in a frame designed to display the coin easily and to mimic the coins shape, both of which it appears to do successfully.

Maple Leaf collectors will find much to like here we think. No word on price yet as the official launch isn’t until the ANA show on August 11th, but MNI price this size of coin pretty well as they’ve done in the past with the Colosseum and Lincoln coins. Known mainly for some very esoteric high end coins, many made of multiple pieces, Modern Numismatics International are showing more interest in the one-ounce market and seem to be having a great time of it. We’ve had both those previous issues in hand and both were impressive designs. They’re also the producer of the Perth Mint struck Famous Ships That Never Sailed series.

THE CANADIAN MAPLE LEAF

Also called l’Unifolié (French for “the one-leafed”), the Maple Leaf is the National Flag of Canada and contains at its centre a stylized, 11-pointed, red maple leaf. The flag made its first official appearance on February 15, 1965; the date is now celebrated annually as National Flag of Canada Day.

The symbol is used on literally scores of coins issued by the Royal Canadian Mint, right up to a huge 100kg gold monster, and there are usually a couple of new ones every month amongst the mints prodigious output. The mint has experimented with countless variants from simple gilding through to hologram and other technologies. The most famous and numerous use of the Maple Leaf in precious metal numismatics is the world-reknowned Maple Leaf bullion coin available in gold and silver, the latter of which sells over 20 million units annually.

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SPECIFICATION