
The early 1” coins seem large by modern standards. Canadian Large penny Collection 1858 To 1920 Complete All Years Nice Set These coins weighed 2.35g and were phased out after 2012.Ħ. The year 2000 introduced contemporary Canadian pennies with 94% steel, 1.5% nickel, and 4.5% copper plating. These coins only weighed 2.25g since they were mostly zinc with a thin copper coat on the outside. The lightest zinc coins were minted from 1997 to 1999 98.4% zinc with 1.4% copper plating. The varied metal composition meant Canadian coins from different generations had diverse weights, even though their diameter stayed the same after 1920 they were 19.05mm or ¾”. Canadian Small Cent Collection Includes 4/25 1920 To 197

This continued until the mid-90s, around 1996.ĥ. Then in the late 1970s, the Canadian penny ratio got tin-heavy again with 98% copper, 1.75% tin, and 0.25% zinc. Later, the mix became 95.5% copper, 3% tin, and 1.5% zinc.ĭuring the post-war years, Canadian pennies were 98% copper, 0.5% tin, and 1.5% zinc, so they had a brassier feel. In their earliest form, the coins were 95% copper, 4% tin, and 1% zinc, which is a popular bronze ratio that’s sometimes called French bronze. Let’s talk a little more about the metal composition of Canadian pennies. Canadian Circulated Small Cents 1920- in Whitman Album. The initial coins were an inch in diameter (25.4mm) and weighed 4.54g.Ĥ. The steel portion of the coin accounts for 94% of its mass, while 1.5% is nickel with an outer coating of copper plating for the final 4.5%. The bulk of the coin is made of steel – an alloy of iron and carbon. The oldest versions were bronze, but today’s coins contain steel. They were coined from 1858 to 2012 and their metal composition changed over the centuries. These coins had the monarch on the obverse (heads side) and some variant of a maple leaf on the reverse (tails side). NGC MS-64 RB 1935 Canadian Cent, Richly toned, Red-Brown specimen So Canadian pennies from various eras featured Queen Victoria, King George V and VI, King Edward VII, and Queen Elizabeth II.ģ. In those early days, Canada was a monarchy, but instead of having its own local kings and queens, they answered to the royal family in Britain. Many commonwealth states have reigning British monarchs on their earliest coins, including the Canadian penny. These are fifty or so countries that were mostly colonized by the UK, and it’s a voluntary association of nations. 1981 Canadian Circulated One Cent / Penny Elizabeth II Coin /Lot A28Ĭanada considers itself part of The Commonwealth. Montreal is the biggest city in Quebec, named after its three-peaked mountain, the famous Mt. This province has the second-largest population in Canada, and they refer to Canadian pennies as sou. In Quebec, most people speak Québécois French aka Canadian French. Canada had colonial powers from both the UK and France, so these are their two official languages.

The tribes are known as the First Nations, and many retain their indigenous languages. Just like the US, Canada had a native pre-colonial population. 1939 Canadian Cent Error? (10 Edges Not Round ) As we trace the most valuable Canadian penny, we’ll look at the history of these coins and their commercial significance to the nation’s economy. In the French-speaking parts of Canada, the coin is sometimes called a black cent (cenne noire) or black penny (sou noir). A penny or cent is one-hundredth of a dollar, which means a hundred cents or pennies make a dollar.
