SKU# OK1421886709EB

2015 $20 Sir John A. Macdonald 200th Birth Anniversary Pure Silver Proof Coin

All coins offered in this listing are unsearched! (see ‘Additional Information’ below)

All of our Canadian coins are stored in a climate controlled, smoke-free vault.  All of our Canadian coins are acquired directly from the Royal Canadian Mint - We do not sell 'second-hand' coins from unreliable and potentially fraudulent/counterfeit sources.

Specifications

Composition: 99.99% Pure Silver

Finish: proof

Weight (g): 31.39 (1 troy oz.)

Diameter (mm): 38

Certificate:  Serialized (serial numbers will vary)

Edge:  serrated

Face Value:  $20 (a legal tender Canadian coin)

Artists:  William Lazos (reverse), Susanna Blunt (obverse)

Description

As Canada prepares to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation in 2017, the Royal Canadian Mint proudly celebrates the 200th anniversary of the birth of the nation's primary architect and first Prime Minister: Sir John A. Macdonald. 

Special features

• This proof-quality coin celebrates Sir John A. Macdonald, one of Canada's most important architects of Confederation.
• The coin features a striking portrait of Sir John A. Macdonald against the backdrop of the original Canadian Parliament Buildings, lost in the Great Fire of 1916, in Ottawa, Ontario.
• This beautiful coin is an excellent addition to any collection focused around the celebration of Canadian history. It is sure to be sought-after among collectors.
• This proudly patriotic coin features a beautiful corona of maple leaves symbolically representing the foundation of Canada. It also includes a banner engraved with the former Prime Minister's name.
• For our Canadian customers, this coin is GST/HST exempt.

Design

This coin features a portrait of Sir John A. Macdonald. Inset in the center of the reverse within a circular engraved frame, Macdonald is presented in three-quarter profile. The beautifully rendered portrait is engraved in exquisite detail, bringing life to the gaze of this powerful figure in Canadian political history. Behind him we see part of the façade of the original Centre Block at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada. The engraved circle framing this inner portrait is finely decorated with stylized maple leaves of varying sizes flanking its left and right sides.

About Sir John A. Macdonald:

On July 1, 1867, the Dominion of Canada was created, and Sir John Alexander Macdonald, a key architect of Canadian Confederation, became the new nation's first Prime Minister. Knighted by Queen Victoria for his role in Canadian Confederation, Sir John A. Macdonald led the nation until his death in 1891, with only a single interruption in his leadership, from 1873 to 1878.

John Alexander Macdonald was born on January 11, 1815, in Glasgow, Scotland. He and his family immigrated to Kingston, Upper Canada in 1820. With a successful law practice, and having held political office at the municipal level in Kingston, Macdonald joined the Upper Canada cabinet in 1847, serving as receiver general and commissioner of Crown Lands. In 1854, he entered the cabinet of the United Province of Canada, serving as Attorney General for Canada West. Taking on a heavy portfolio of legislative work and providing important legal counsel to various departments of the government, his responsibilities grew until he and George-Étienne Cartier were jointly leading the Government.

By the 1860s, it was clear that some form of constitutional change was necessary. John A. Macdonald, along with George Brown, Cartier, and their colleagues presented a vision of a united British North America to the leaders of the Maritime colonies at the Charlottetown Conference in September 1864. They ultimately achieved their goal on July 1, 1867, when the Dominion of Canada was created - with Macdonald, its key architect, as the new nation's Prime Minister.

Macdonald's tireless work sowed the seeds of the sovereign nation of Canada.

Packaging:

This coin is encapsulated and presented in a Royal Canadian Mint-branded maroon clam-shell, protected by a black beauty box.

Shipping & Handling

Fast, free shipping & handling via USPS First Class Mail to all U.S. addresses.  USPS Priority Mail & Priority Mail Express are also available for an additional charge.

International shipping via the eBay Global Shipping Program.

Additional Information

OK Ranch sells fine collectible, investment, and gift coins; fine & fashion jewelry; gifts, and more through our eBay store. 

“Unsearched” — All of the coins offered in this listing are “unsearched”.  Many coin dealers “search” all coins when they are received from the Mint.  They "cherry-pick" the best coins.  Then submit them to be graded, certified, and slabbed by PCGS, NGC, ANACS, etc.  These graded and certified coins are then sold at higher, premium prices.  When a dealer searches coins, those that they sell in original Mint packaging are only lesser quality coins.

Photos: When a listing offers multiples of the same coin, one coin is picked at random and photographed.  Since all coins offered in that listing are essentially identical, the coin photographed is representative of all coins offered.