Royal Canadian Mint – Gold Maple Leaf

Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coins debuted with .999 pure gold content, but were enhanced beginning in November 1982 to include .9999 pure gold. At times, the Royal Canadian Mint has even achieved .99999 pure gold content in its Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coins.

The Canadian Gold Maple Leaf is so popular that the Royal Canadian Mint has launched numerous variants of the coin, including but not limited to:

• 10th Anniversary coin in 1989.
• 125th Anniversary of the Royal Canadian Mint in 1997.
• 20th Anniversary coin in 1999.
• 25th Anniversary coin in 2004.
• Hologram Gold Maple Leaf coins in 1999, 2001, and 2009.
• Colorized Gold Maple Leaf in 1999 (20th anniversary edition) and 2010 to celebrate the Vancouver Winter Olympics.
• Numerous 99.999% Gold Maple Leafs (2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, etc.).

The obverse (front) design features the right-profile portrait of Queen Elizabeth II. On the Canadian Gold Maple Leaf, three different incarnations of Her Majesty’s profile have appeared. These include the following used to date:

• 1979 to 1989 – The image of a 39-year-old Queen Elizabeth II.
• 1990 to 2004 – A depiction of Queen Elizabeth II at 64 years of age.
• 2005 to Present – Susanna Blunt’s depiction of Her Majesty at the age of 79.

The reverse (back) designfeatures the image of the sugar maple leaf. Used on the reverse since the introduction of the gold version in 1979, this image has never changed. The only additions have been security measures, notably radial lines and a microscopic maple leaf privy..