Publications and Research

Spring 1995

Interpreting recent changes in monetary aggregates by Kevin Clinton Exchange rate fundamentals and the Canadian dollar by Robert Lafrance and Simon van Norden Disinflation in the 1990s: The experience of the industrialized world by Graydon Paulin Managing the federal government's cash balances: A technical note by Daryl Merrett, Serge Boisvert, and Philippe Côté

Cover: Canada: sovereign die, 1908

This is a mint production tool, the steel die that was used to strike the reverse of Canada’s first gold coins, the 1908 sovereigns. The Royal Mint in London, England, sent the die to Ottawa in 1908, when it opened its new branch there.

The die for the Canadian sovereign is identical to that for the British sovereign, with the exception of the small C (for Canada), which is barely discernible on the ground line above the date.

The design, which is incuse (sunken) and mirror-image (reversed) shows the figure of St. George on horseback about to slay the dragon. Because it is incuse, the die produces a raised image when a coin is struck. The letters B.P. refer to Benedetto Pistrucci, who originated the design in 1817. The black circle surrounding the image is the sloping shoulder of the die.

The new coin was well received in Canada and, except for 1912 and 1915, was minted from 1908 to 1919. Because of a shortage of refined gold, only 636 sovereigns were struck in 1908. The value of the sovereign was approximately five dollars.

The die is part of the National Currency Collection, Bank of Canada.

Photography by James Zagon.