A short history of The Royal Canadian Mint.

The Royal Canadian Mint has been producing coins for more than a century.

In 1931, the heritage building, all the land surrounding it and the minting enterprise itself officially became property of Canada. The Mint was now entirely Canadian owned.The first date of production was January 2, 1908 and Governor Earl Grey activated the press that officially struck the first coin. A fifty cent piece was the first item to be created that day. The last item of the day, Canada’s first bronze cent, was officially struck by the governor’s wife.

The inception of the Royal Mint came at a time when gold production in British Columbia and the Yukon was rapidly increasing. Getting the gold out of the ground was a big challenge, but refining it into gold suitable for use as bullion was also no easy matter. The country needed a refinery that could take the rough gold and bring it to the proper coinage standard.

In 1911, the Canadian Royal Mint opened its first refinery. It provided valuable service to the British Empire during the Great War by producing the gold bars that Britain would later use to pay its debts.

The refinery was later upgraded. In 1936, a new refinery was created that was designed to meet future demands as well as current production needs. This new refinery could refine gold for mines and banks throughout the world. It continues to operate, and since 1969 has actually produced 9999 fine gold bars.

This refinery became the world’s first one to produce 9999 fine gold bullion coins in 1982. The refinery earned another honor in 1999 by becoming the first Mint to achieve a purity of 99999.

The Mint is ISO 9001 Certified for its gold and silver refinery. This Certification is awarded to companies that focus on meeting customer expectations, and have a proven track record of customer satisfaction.

The Royal Canadian Mint produces a range of products. In addition to circulation coins and bullion, the mint issues collector’s coins. The mint will issue special edition commemoration coins in honor of special events.Inspectors look closely at the quality management system to be sure it is effective and appropriate. This process forces an applying business to constantly identify areas of improvement and implement the changes needed to make them.

Examples include the cultured Poppy quarter, and the 2010 Olympic mascot coins. They also have a department where gifts and souvenirs can be purchased.

The Royal Canadian Mint produces coins for governments all over the world, as well as for the government of Canada. Bullion coins produced by Canada are cast using several metals; gold, silver, platinum and palladium. The high speed presses are capable of producing twenty million coins every day.

In an average workday, this production level works out to 750 coins every second. The mint proved its craftsmanship by being the first in the world to produce a 100 kg, 99999 pure gold bullion coin that carried a face value of one million.

The centerpiece of their bullion line continues to be the bullion coins featuring the maple leaf, Canada’s national symbol.

Read our guide to buying Canadian gold coins…