Canadian Silver Maple Leaf

The Canadian Silver Maple Leaf is a one troy ounce (31.1 g of silver) silver bullion coin minted by the Royal Canadian Mint. The silver bullion coins have been issued yearly since 1988.
While the U.S. Silver Eagle bears a face value of only $1, the Canadian bullion Silver Maple Leaf shows $5. Regardless of the face value however the coin contains one troy ounce of pure silver making it very unlikely that it will ever trade at face value. Personally I think the practice of placing a face value on these bullion coins is a bit odd. What is the purpose of a face value on a coin other than to reflect, or at least be an index of, its market value? But that is how it is, and it is interesting to note that Canada puts a much higher face value on their silver ounce coins than does the U.S.

The Canadian Silver Maple Leaf, as well as the U.S. Silver Eagle is made up of 99.99% pure silver which makes them much softer than 90% silver coins
Over the years there have been a lot of variations to the Silver Maple Leaf including weight differences and color issues. There is one thing that all these coins have in common and that is the inscription “Fine Silver 1 oz. Argent Pur” which you will find near the bottom on the reverse side.
With the varying mintages from one year to the next some Silver Maple Leafs are much less common than others. Naturally this leads to higher premiums for certain years and special issues. Collectability can play a major part in determining the market value for a specific coin. Keep in mind that most common dated Silver Maple Leafs will trade in relation to the silver spot.

The Canadian Silver Maple Leaf is recognized and respected around the world. I think they are a good addition to your portfolio but be sure to try to get them as close to spot value as you can. At the time of this writing I am seeing Maple Leafs available for around $2.50 to $5 above spot (depending upon quantity). Check the spreads and compare to U.S. Silver Eagles.

Canadian Silver Maple Leaf Annual Mintage Numbers

1988 – 1,062,000 1989 – 3,332,200 1990 – 1,708,800 1991 – 644,300 1992 – 343,800 1993 – 1,133,900 1994 – 889,946 1995 – 326,244 1996 – 250,445 1997 – 100,970 1998 – 591,359 1999 – 1,229,442 999-2000 dual date – 300,000

2000 – 403,652 2001 – 398,563 2002 – 576,196 2003 – 684,750 2004 – 680,925 2005 – 955,694 2006 – 2,464,727 2007 – 3,526,052 2008 – 7,909,161 2009 – 9,727,592 2010 – 17,799,992 2011 – 23,129,966

More Information:

• The Royal Canadian Mint