The Royal Canadian Mint and Silver Gold Bull unveil a stunning silver $ 2 collectible coin
The half- ounce piece, which is slightly smaller than a toonie, celebrates city’s big event
The Royal Canadian Mint and Silver Gold Bull unveiled a silver Calgary Stampede $ 2 coin during a Thursday ceremony on the Stampede grounds.
The Mint also brought along its gold Million Dollar Coin for its first Calgary visit.
Alex Reeves, the senior manager of communications for the Royal Canadian Mint, says he hopes it will help make Stampede special.
“I want to wish Stampede president Bill Gray and the people of Calgary another excellent Stampede in 2015, which you can now celebrate and remember with your very own Royal Canadian Mint silver bullion coin,” Reeves said.
Here are five things to know about the new Stampede coin.
1. It’s half an ounce of 99.99 per cent pure silver.
The coin is slightly larger than a toonie and around 6,430 times lighter than the Million Dollar Coin, which is made of 3,215 ounces of gold — that’s 100 kg. 2. The value fluctuates daily. Because the coin is a bullion product, its value changes with the global price of silver. On Thursday, it was worth around $ 8, said Reeves. As legal tender, the coin is worth $2.
The coin retails for around $15.
3. You can get one at any Stampede store.
The coin is being sold as a collector’s item and an investment in silver. They’re available at any Calgary Stampede store as well as online, including at the Silver Gold website. Silver Gold has the exclusive rights to sell the coin
outside Canada.
4. The artist also designed the Stampede’s centennial coin.
The Royal Canadian Mint released a coin to commemorate the centennial of the Calgary Stampede in 2012. The artist who designed the coin was Steve Hepburn, whose rodeo illustration is now on the silver bullion coin.
Reeves said the Mint works with Canadian artists to represent Canada on all their bullion products, because bullion is sold internationally. The bullion line also includes coins with maple leaves and Canadian wildlife.
“It’s truly an honour to see the spirit of the Stampede, the Stampede rodeo and particularly our bull riding event immortalized in silver,” Stampede president Bill Gray said.
5. It’s available until the end of the year.
The coin is being minted based on demand, with over 100,000 already produced. Last year, the Mint sold around 30 million silver maple leaf bullion coins, according to Reeves. The Stampede coin is labelled 2015 and will be available for the rest of the year.