Description
Theme:
This stunning fine silver coin is the perfect backdrop for the sparkling hologram of two maple leaves that sits at its centre.
Hope for long-term peace and good fortune are important markers of Chinese culture that have helped to build strong and vibrant Chinese communities across Canada. A celebration of the unique heritage of Chinese Canadians and an appreciation for this ancient culture, its customs, and its vibrant traditions, this coin focuses on the great Chinese blessing of peace.
Description:
This 99.99% fine silver coin has a diameter of 38 millimeters and weighs 31.39 grams. It is the fifth coin in the Royal Canadian Mint’s hologram maple series celebrating the history and traditions of Canada’s Chinese communities. The reverse image features Canadian artist Simon Ng’s striking “elephant carrying a vase” design. The central element is a stylized elephant in traditional dressing and riding blanket embroidered with flowers and vines. The elephant is viewed in profile from its right side, its head facing the right side of the coin. Its long trunk is coiled beneath its neck in a gesture symbolic of longevity. Its ear is decorated with a chrysanthemum in full bloom—a flower that symbolizes ease and good fortune. On the elephant’s back is a vase decorated in elegant detail with various flowers. Beneath the elephant’s belly, the Chinese characters for “peace” are engraved. The elephant and vase are surrounded by various stylized flowers on vines. Each type of flower blooms at a different time through the year. This motif thus extends the blessing offered by the coin to mean “may this blessing continue throughout the year.” The riding blanket bears a central medallion containing a hologram featuring two maple leaves. The top of the reverse field is engraved with the word “CANADA”, the date “2013,” and the face value of “15 DOLLARS.” The obverse features the effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Susanna Blunt.
Special Features:
- Fifth coin in the Royal Canadian Mint’s stunning Hologram Maple series celebrating the history and traditions of Canada’s Chinese communities.
- Unique selective hologram and captivating style make this an excellent addition to any collection.
Product Specifications:
Face Value: 15 dollars
Composition: 99.99% fine silver
Weight (g): 31.39
Diameter (mm):38
Edge: Serrated
Finish: Proof with hologram
Certificate: serialized
Artist: Simon Ng
Packaging:
Coin is encapsulated and presented in a Royal Canadian Mint branded maroon clamshell case lined with flock and protected by a black sleeve.
2013 Maple of Peace
Chinese and Asian cultures have introduced a number of innovations to the world, one of the most well-known being the development of ceramics and porcelain featuring motifs from the natural world. Living in a region rich in the raw materials necessary for creating a wide variety of ceramics, the people of China, for example, have been working with this art form since the Paleolithic era.
Within the pantheon of Asian artistic subjects, the elephant is perhaps one of the most well known outside of Asia. An elephant with a vase on its back is a well-recognized motif of southeast Asian ceramics. The elephant is a sacred and symbolic figure in Buddhist tradition, associated with strength and wisdom and believed to attract prosperity. The Chinese character for vase (ping) is pronounced the same way as that for “peace” and “safety.” Paired together in this coin’s reverse design, the image of an elephant carrying a vase on its back is offered as a blessing or wish that the receiver encounter both good luck and, with it, peace, safety, and wisdom.
When the image of a vase is accompanied by images of flowers from the four seasons, the blessing is extended to mean “may you find good luck and peace throughout the year.”
