Royal Canadian Mint’s Vancouver 2010 commemorative circulation coin program continues with 25-cent figure skating coin. Canadians from coast to coast encouraged to hold onto their “lucky” quarters.

OTTAWA — The Royal Canadian Mint’s newest coin in the Vancouver 2010 collection is here! The sport of figure skating is depicted on the coin, which is the ninth of 17 circulation coins to commemorate the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The launch of the coin was celebrated yesterday in Vancouver with area youth and Vancouver 2010 mascots Quatchi, Miga and Sumi.

"Canada has a very proud history in Olympic figure skating and the Mint is delighted to feature this popular winter sport in our extensive coin program," said Ian E. Bennett, President and CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint. "Saving this special coin, along with the other coins in the Vancouver 2010 collection, is a unique way to build momentum as we await the Games and to generate luck for our athletes who will be competing in this momentous event in our nation’s history."

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The Royal Canadian Mint’s world-famous "Million Dollar Coin" made its Asian debut at Beijing’s Olympic Expo 2008 (Olympex). The unveiling was conducted by The Honourable David Emerson, Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge and Honorary IOC President for Life Juan Antonio Samaranch.

This unprecedented coin, recently certified by Guinness World Records as the world’s largest gold bullion coin, represents the international bullion industry’s summit of achievement in gold purity.

The Mint is also participating in Olympex to showcase its Vancouver 2010 coin program, the largest ever produced in honour of an Olympic Games. It will also display specimens of coins minted in celebration of past Olympic Games hosted in Canada, as well as offer unique and innovative collector coins and gifts for sale to visitors to the Mint’s booth.

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Goldline International, Inc. today announced the acquisition of 1, 700 "first strike" one ounce 2008 Canadian Maple Leaf gold coins designed and minted by the Royal Canadian Mint.

The exceptionally attractive gold coins feature the Canadian national symbol of a maple leaf on the reverse or tails side and a portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse or heads side.

Each coin is struck from .99999 fine gold. They are among the purest coins struck in the world, and were first introduced by the Mint in 2007. Gold Maple Leafs were issued prior — starting in 1979 — but not to the 24 karat purity level.

The coin’s denominated (legal tender) face value is $200. However, their gold content alone is worth about $900 in today’s market. There is a premium normally associated with the collectible value for each as well. Their face value, gold content, and purity are guaranteed by the Canadian Government.

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Ottawa, Ontario – With the Beijing Olympic Games and Beijing Paralympic Games just around the corner, the Royal Canadian Mint is proud to issue the 2008 Lucky Loonie, the latest in its extensive Olympic themed circulation coin program.

The one-dollar coin, which features the familiar loon landing in water and the official emblem of the Canadian Olympic Team, enters into circulation today.

"Canadians from coast to coast can wish our athletes luck by keeping special coins produced by the Royal Canadian Mint, including the 2008 Lucky Loonie," said Ian E. Bennett, President and CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint.

"The Mint has provided each member of the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Teams competing in Beijing with a Lucky Loonie as their own personal good luck charm and through the launch of the coin, Canadians also have an opportunity to own a piece of the Olympic dream."

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City of Quebec, Quebec - As it marks a century of gold craftsmanship in 2008, the Royal Canadian Mint (RCM) is pleased to unveil a wealth of gold creations and artifacts as a proud participant in the Gold in the Americas exhibit of the City of Quebec’s Musée de la civilisation.

The RCM is sponsoring this spectacular exhibition, which runs from April 30, 2008 to January 11, 2009. Its chief contribution and the “pièce de résistance” of the exhibit is the Mint’s dazzling 100-kg, 99.999% pure gold bullion coin with a $1 million face value.

This masterpiece was recently recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s largest gold coin.

"The Royal Canadian Mint is proud to showcase the skill and artistry which have made it one of the world’s premier refiners and producers of gold bullion products and collector coins,” said Ian E. Bennett, RCM President and CEO.

“By sponsoring this exhibit, the Mint, which is celebrating its own centennial in 2008, wishes to bequeath an unforgettable memory to the City of Quebec as it marks its 400th anniversary.”

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A new bill was introduced yesterday that proposes the elimination of the Canadian penny. Abolishing a country’s smallest denominated coin is not new. It has certainly happened in the past, and several countries are publicly debating the issue or implementing a recall of their smallest coin right now.

As examples, in recent months and weeks there has been talk of Russia removing their one-kopek, Denmark saying goodbye to their 25-øre and Malaysia abandoning their one-sen.

Unlike the dilemma other countries face, like the U.S., the cost to manufacture the Canadian penny is actually less than its value. That’s one less obstacle to overcome for those who would like to keep it.

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CoinNews has added a Canadian Silver Coin Calculator, a collector tool that determines the value of silver within Canadian coins.

The calculator is very similar to the U.S. Silver Coin Calculator and the Australian Silver Coin Calculator. Some of the features include:

• Calculation in Canadian or U.S. dollars
• Listing of the total silver weight of coins in troy ounces and grams
• A user controlled bid/ask spread
• A Silver Chart that reflects the silver value of coins over time (in Canadian or U.S. dollars)

The collector tool provides calculations for silver coinage that circulated since 1920 to include:

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The Royal Canadian Mint (RCM) suffered through its third fire in three years Sunday night. Fortunately, no injuries were reported but there was fire damage.

The Ottawa Citizen reported that officials indicated the fire was started by an electrical short in an electroplating vat where coins are coated.

According to the same article, the approximate damage amount for this fire and the past two were:

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