Last updated on October 17th, 2023 at 12:24 pm
Last Updated on October 17, 2023 Posted by Colonial Acres Coins
The Royal Canadian Mint offers many unique and beautiful finishes of special coins for collectors like you. Recent advances in minting technology have allowed for exact applications of textures and patterns, and today, there are many more coin finishes. Here, we take the opportunity to explain the different Canadian coin finishes and cover some of our products as examples.
Deepening your knowledge of the finishes used to produce coins in your collection will deepen your appreciation for the coins themselves and connect you with the manufacturing process, allowing you to truly feel the “soul” of the coin.
Brilliant Uncirculated
The Brilliant Uncirculated finish is the typical finish used every year on standard circulation coins. This finish avoids textured and matte engraving, giving the coin a shiny, lustrous appearance. The 2023 Canada Collector’s Edition 50-cent Brilliant Uncirculated is a good example. Notice how it preserves the effigy’s detail while maintaining a smooth finish throughout the entire surface of the coin.
Proof
The proof finish is one way to highlight the relief on a coin by creating a completely smooth, mirror-like background with a frosted relief. Canadian coin finishes like this often will have accentuated features achieved by treating different parts of the coin with various frosted finishes.
One of our favourites is the 2023 His Majesty King Charles III’s Royal Cypher Limited Edition Proof Silver Dollar, a special issue coin that marks an extraordinary event. You can see how the effigy of Queen Elizabeth, as well as the raised text and detailed cypher on the obverse side, are all finished in a frosted texture that makes them stand out from the smooth background.
Reverse Proof
The reverse proof uses a matte background while highlighting the coin’s features with a shiny, mirror-like finish. This creates an effect of contrast between the design and the background in a “reverse” way to a Proof finish. The 2023 Ultra High Relief 1oz Silver Maple Leaf $20 Coin with Selective Gold Plating is a particularly striking example of this, with the smooth glistening gold maple leaf sticking out from the textured matte background.
Matte Proof
The matte proof finish avoids high-shine polish in the background and opts for a satin finish instead. Like the proof finish, a frosted relief stands out and accentuates details. Many people enjoy the “aged” appearance this gives to coins minted in this way.
The 2017 Lion Dance Fine Silver $8 Coin demonstrates this, as you can feel the delicately textured ribbons adorning the lion’s body in contrast with the smooth satin background.
Specimen
Of all the Canadian coin finishes you will find on our website, the specimen finish truly highlights the technical abilities of the Royal Canadian Mint. Coins of this variety have a background that consists of a striated matte pattern that requires precise machining.
We cannot overstate the complexity and detail of specimen finish coins, and to truly appreciate it, we recommend you check out the 2023 Conservation Stories: Greater Sage-Grouse Specimen Set.
Don’t Race to the Finish
Now that you know the meanings of the different finishes of collectible Canadian coins featured at Colonial Acres, you can take your time to view our collection and find something that truly speaks to you.
As you may have noticed if you looked at some of the examples we mentioned above, each coin on our website has a complete and detailed description that includes the style of finish used in minting that coin, so you know exactly what to expect when you receive it.
Perhaps you would like to show off your knowledge of the different coin finishes by featuring a coin of every kind of finish in your own collection. We are proud to offer various coins from the Royal Canadian Mint with all the different Canadian coin finishes described above. Whether you are looking for brilliant uncirculated, proof, reverse proof, matte proof or specimen coins, we have something for everyone. Are you ready to explore the world of collectible coins? Visit our website or contact us.