Canadian Dime
>Find valuable buying/selling information on several (29) of the most popular Canadian silver coins in my book The Last Canadian 80 Percent Silver Coins. Available as an eBook.
1936 Canadian 'Dot' Dime. Fetching $184,000 at auction, the 'dot' dime of 1936 is another great collector's coin. This dime was actually produced in 1937, and the dot was added to the 1936 design. These Canadian Coins can be found in your pocket change! We will look at the 10 Valuable Canadian Dimes that could be out in circulation today!
Silver Canadian coins have a most interesting history. The coins that were minted at London's Royal Mint beginning in 1858 were five-cent, ten-cent and twenty-cent coins containing 92.5 percent silver. In 1870, the twenty-five cent coin (silver Canadian quarter) replaced the twenty-cent coin and the fifty-cent coin (silver Canadian half-dollar) was introduced.
Some of these early silver coins were minted by the Heaton Mint (a privately owned mint located in Birmingham, England) and bear the 'H' mint mark. In 1908, the Royal Canadian Mint was established to begin production of Canada's coins.
Silver coins with 92.5 percent silver fineness...
Canadian Dime(1858-1919): Silver Content=.0690-.0694 Troy ounces*
Canadian Twenty-Cent Coin(1858): Silver Content=.1382 Troy ounces*
Canadian Quarter(1870-1919): Silver Content=.1728-.1734 Troy ounces*
Canadian Half-Dollar(1870-1919): Silver Content=.3456 Troy ounces*
*The silver content for the above coins are for uncirculated coins. Circulated coins have a slightly lower silver content due to their wear from daily commerce.
Due to the rising price of silver after World War I, the Canadian government made the decision to reduce the amount of silver in their coins from the sterling silver content of 92.5 percent to 80 percent. This started in 1920 and continued until 1967. More information on these coins...
Silver coins with 80 percent silver fineness...
Canadian Quarters(1920-1967): Silver Content=.1463 Troy ounces (circulated), .1500 uncirculated
Canadian Half-Dollars(1920-1967): Silver Content=.2925 Troy ounces (circulated), .3000 uncirculated
Canadian Dollars(1936-1967): Silver content=.600 Troy ounces.
Sampling of Canadian Eighty-Percent Silver Coins
Canadian Nickels containing silver were discontinued after 1921. 1967 was the last year Silver Canadian Dollars and Half Dollars were struck for general circulation.
By mid-1967, Canada reduced the silver content of the Canadian Dime and Canadian Quarter from 80 to 50 percent. Unfortunately there is no practical way to determine which coins contain 80 percent silver versus those containing only 50 percent silver.
Silver coins with 50 percent silver fineness...
Canadian Quarter(1967-1968): Silver Content=.0937 Troy ounces, Gross Wt.=5.81 grams
By mid-1968, silver was removed from all Canadian circulating coins of these denominations.
To determine the approximate silver melt value of a Silver Canadian Coin, multiply the amount of silver (in Troy ounces) by the current spot price of silver. The chart at right shows the current spot price of one troy ounce of silver in Canadian dollars. To see the current spot silver price in U.S. dollars, go to the Silver Investing Guide Home page.
Example: The approximate value of a Silver Canadian dollar with the spot price of silver at $32.00 Canadian is $19.20 CAD ($32.00 x .6) plus the current premium.
Canadian Silver on Amazon
If you live in Canada, a likely starting point for your purchases would be at your local coin shop. If you are a U.S. citizen or a Canadian visiting the U.S., you may have better luck at a coin shop in one of the states bordering Canada as I have found a majority of coin shops in the U.S. are a 'little light' on their knowledge and inventory of Canadian coins. If you have trouble don't overlook Amazon. Here you can find circulated and uncirculated coins sold in quantities of one or in small lots.
Silver coins, especially in smaller denominations, can be useful in barter situations. You would be wise to have some in your possession. For your convenience, I have included a sampling of silver Canadian coins available on Amazon. You might be able to pick up some nice coins at a decent price. Be aware I receive a small compensation if you buy through this site which does not result in you paying more. Click on 'Go' to see a larger selection.
Disclaimer:I have made every reasonable effort to produce an informative and helpful article on Canadian silver coins based on my research and experiences. However, I make no representation or warranties of any kind with regard to its completeness, accuracy or suitability for any specific situation or purpose. See Terms and Conditions for more info.
| Value | 0.10 Canadian dollar |
|---|---|
| Mass | 1.75 g |
| Diameter | 18.03 mm |
| Thickness | 1.22 mm |
| Edge | Milled |
| Composition | Nickel-plated steel 92% steel, 5.5% Cu, 2.5% Ni plating |
| Years of minting | 1858–present |
| Catalog number | - |
| Obverse | |
| Design | Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada |
| Designer | Susanna Blunt |
| Design date | 2003 |
| Reverse | |
| Design | Bluenoseschooner |
| Designer | Emanuel Hahn; design based on a Wallace MacAskill photograph of Bluenose, not artwork of Hahn[1] |
| Design date | 1937 |
In Canada, a dime is a coin worth ten cents. It has been the physically smallest Canadian coin since 1922; it is smaller even than the penny, despite its higher face value. According to the Royal Canadian Mint, the official national term of the coin is the 10-cent piece, but in practice, the term dime predominates in English-speaking Canada. It is nearly identical in size to the American dime. Unlike its American counterpart, the Canadian dime is magnetic due to a distinct metal composition. From 1968 to 1999, it was composed entirely of nickel, and since 2000, it has consisted of a steel core with plating composed of layers of nickel and copper.
Currently the dime has, as with all Canadian coins, a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse. The reverse contains a representation of the Bluenose, a famous Canadian schooner. The artist, Emanuel Hahn, used three ships including the Bluenose as his models, so the ship design is actually a composite. The coin is produced by the Royal Canadian Mint at its facility in Winnipeg.
The word dime comes from the French word dîme, meaning 'tithe' or 'tenth part', from the Latindecima [pars].
History of composition[edit]
Canadian Dime Asw
| Years | Mass | Diameter/Shape | Composition[2] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000–present | 1.75 g | 18.03 mm | 92.0% steel (AISI 1006 alloy[3]), 5.5% copper, 2.5% nickel plating |
| 1979–1999 | 2.075 g | 18.03 mm | 99.9% nickel |
| 1969–1978 | 2.07 g | 18.03 mm | 99.9% nickel |
| 1968 | 2.07 g 2.33 g | 18.03 mm 18.034 mm | 99.9% nickel (172.5M) 50% silver, 50% copper (70.4M) |
| 1967 | 2.33 g | 18.034 mm | 50% silver, 50% copper (30.6M) 80% silver, 20% copper (32.3M) |
| 1920–1966 | 2.33 g | 18.034 mm | 80% silver, 20% copper |
| 1910–1919 | 2.33 g | 18.034 mm | 92.5% silver, 7.5% copper |
| 1858–1910 | 2.32 g | 18.034 mm | 92.5% silver, 7.5% copper |
Commemorative editions[edit]
| Year | Theme | Artist | Mintage | Special notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Canadian Centennial | Alex Colville | 62,998,215 | Features a mackerel. |
| 2001 | International Year of the Volunteer | Stan Witten | 272,465,000 | Issued in honour of the United Nations' International Year of the Volunteer. |
| 2017 | Canada 150 | Amy Choi | Commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Confederation of Canada. Features a maple leaf (titled 'Wings of Peace') that forms the wings and tail of a dove. The theme of the coin is 'Our Character'. |
Other notable dates[edit]
- 1936 dot: Extremely rare with only 5 known. There are 3 in private collections, one graded Specimen-63 and 2 examples graded SP-68. The other 2 are in the Ottawa currency museum. The most recent of these to sell at auction was one of the SP68 coins, which brought US$184,000 (this does not include taxes) in a Heritage Auction in January 2010.[4]
- 1969 large date: Fewer than 20 examples of the large date variety exist. High-grade versions of this coin sell for $15,000 to $30,000. There is only one graded in mint state as of 2012.
- 1999p: The first Canada 10-cent coin issued with the new plating 'P' process. Plated coins are marked with a small 'P' beneath the Queen's effigy on the obverse of the coin. Mintage is limited to 20,000 coins.
- 2000p: The 2000p Canada dime is scarce with fewer than 250 examples minted. The 2000p dime was lent to the vending industry by the Royal Canadian Mint to test the compatibility of the new plating process of circulation coins with existing vending machines and parking meters. Under contractual obligation, these coins were to be returned to the Mint once the compatibility tests were complete. Of the approximately 250 coins minted, many were not returned to the mint leading to significant debate surrounding the legality of owning these coins. High-grade examples of the 2000p 10-cent issue range from $1,500 to $3,000 CDN. Unlike the 5-cent 2000p issues, the 10-cent coin was not officially released by the Mint, and entered the numismatic market illegally.
First strikes[edit]
| Year | Theme | Mintage | Issue Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Bluenose | 1,861 | $14.95 |
| 2006 | With new mint mark | 5,000 | $29.95 |
Canadian Dime Melt Value
References[edit]
- ^'Pride and skill–the 10-cent coin'. mint.ca. Royal Canadian Mint. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
- ^'Pride and skill–the 10-cent coin'. mint.ca. Royal Canadian Mint. Retrieved February 9, 2019.
- ^'Control of electromagnetic signals of coins through multi-ply plating technology'. Google Patents. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
- ^'George V 10 Cents 1936 Dot'. Retrieved 2020-03-28.
- Cross, W.K. (2005). Canadian Coins (59th ed.). Toronto: The Charlton Press. p. 501. ISBN0-88968-288-7.