Description
The Royal Canadian Mint’s poignant Conservation series highlights some of Canada’s most unique and vulnerable species, which contribute to this country’s rich biodiversity.
Coin No.1: The Whooping Crane
The first coin in this new three-coin Conservation series features the majestic whooping crane, whose plight is an oft-cited story of near-extinction and ongoing recovery.
Coin No. 2: The Grey Fox
The second coin in this new three-coin series highlights the unique and rare grey fox. The reverse design by Canadian artist Laurene Spino features a full-body portrait of a grey fox standing on a maple bough. This lovely image captures the silent intensity of this extremely efficient predator. Viewed from its right side with its face turned toward the viewer, the furry fox stands poised to pounce from the bough on which it stands, its front left paw raised and ready for action. A variety of engraving and finishing techniques highlight the grey fox’s unique physical traits, including its masked eyes, dark back, tail stripe, and long legs. The left side of the image includes several branches of feathery maple leaves, underscoring the grey fox’s Canadian presence.
Coin No. 3: The Narwhal
As the last of the three-coin series, this fine silver coin stands as a beautiful showcase of one of Canada’s most secretive and enigmatic Arctic residents: the legendary narwhal (Monodon monoceros). The reverse design by Canadian artist Curtis Atwater features two meticulously engraved narwhals moving through the waters in Canada’s Arctic region. A variety of finishing techniques enhance this life-like depiction, bringing added depth and a breathtaking life-like quality to the icy setting. In the foreground, an adult narwhal remains partially submerged as it lifts its head above water through an opening between the ice floes; its spiralled tusk naturally draws the viewer’s eye upwards to the tapered point, which is extended towards the sky. Beneath the water’s surface, the mottled narwhal uses its convex tail fins to propel its movements, curving its sleek body to provide lift as it surfaces. Swimming alongside the adult is a juvenile narwhal; armed with its own small tusk, this young narwhal remains submerged as a trail of air bubbles are released from the blowhole atop its domed head. Its presence is both touching and meaningful, symbolising hope for the continued survival of this mysterious and captivating species in a changing Arctic landscape. The obverse features the effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Susanna Blunt.
The first coin in this new three-coin Conservation series features the majestic whooping crane, whose plight is an oft-cited story of near-extinction and ongoing recovery.
The reverse design by Canadian artist Luc Normandin captures all of the majesty, elegance and beauty of a whooping crane in flight. Fully extended, the bird’s broad wings fill the upper space of the image's field, revealing the black flight feathers that are normally hidden when the bird is at rest. The crane’s long neck and legs are extended as it takes flight, lending the image a sense of energy and movement. Behind the whooping crane, its nesting habitat in the Canadian wetlands is beautifully rendered in fine detail, complete with the tall grasses and wooded areas along the marsh’s edge.
Coin No. 2: The Grey Fox
The second coin in this new three-coin series highlights the unique and rare grey fox. The reverse design by Canadian artist Laurene Spino features a full-body portrait of a grey fox standing on a maple bough. This lovely image captures the silent intensity of this extremely efficient predator. Viewed from its right side with its face turned toward the viewer, the furry fox stands poised to pounce from the bough on which it stands, its front left paw raised and ready for action. A variety of engraving and finishing techniques highlight the grey fox’s unique physical traits, including its masked eyes, dark back, tail stripe, and long legs. The left side of the image includes several branches of feathery maple leaves, underscoring the grey fox’s Canadian presence.
Coin No. 3: The Narwhal
As the last of the three-coin series, this fine silver coin stands as a beautiful showcase of one of Canada’s most secretive and enigmatic Arctic residents: the legendary narwhal (Monodon monoceros). The reverse design by Canadian artist Curtis Atwater features two meticulously engraved narwhals moving through the waters in Canada’s Arctic region. A variety of finishing techniques enhance this life-like depiction, bringing added depth and a breathtaking life-like quality to the icy setting. In the foreground, an adult narwhal remains partially submerged as it lifts its head above water through an opening between the ice floes; its spiralled tusk naturally draws the viewer’s eye upwards to the tapered point, which is extended towards the sky. Beneath the water’s surface, the mottled narwhal uses its convex tail fins to propel its movements, curving its sleek body to provide lift as it surfaces. Swimming alongside the adult is a juvenile narwhal; armed with its own small tusk, this young narwhal remains submerged as a trail of air bubbles are released from the blowhole atop its domed head. Its presence is both touching and meaningful, symbolising hope for the continued survival of this mysterious and captivating species in a changing Arctic landscape. The obverse features the effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Susanna Blunt.
