The Canadian fifty-cent coin () is a Canadian coin worth 50 cents. The coin's reverse depicts the coat of arms of Canada. At the opening ceremonies for the Ottawa branch of the Royal Mint, held on January 2, 1908, Governor General Earl Grey struck the Dominion of Canada's first domestically produced coin. It was a silver fifty-cent coin bearing the effigy of King Edward VII.
Though it is regularly minted, it is not made in large quantities (approximate annual average production of 150,000), and since 2004 has only been available to the public directly from the mint.
A largely unsuccessful attempt was made by the Royal Canadian Mint to promote the use of the coin when a special edition was released in 2002 marking the 50th anniversary of the accession of Elizabeth II to the throne. After this failed promotion, the mint stopped distributing 50-cent coins to banks and now sells them only in rolls or in coin sets available directly from their Numismatic Department at twice their face value, or $25 per roll of 25 coins.
The mint's website lists the 2007 coat of arms 50-cent coin as "rarely seen yet replete with tradition".
History
During the early to mid-1920s, demand for 50-cent coins was minimal. Only 28,000 coins were issued between 1921 and 1929. When greater demand for the denomination arose in 1929, the Master of the Ottawa Mint decided to melt the stock of 1920 and 1921 coins. It amounted to a total of 480,392 coins. The decision was due to the belief that the public would suspect counterfeits if a large number of coins dated 1920 and 1921 were placed into circulation. It is believed that 75 or so of the 1921 coins have survived, mainly from sets that were sold at the time.
Composition and size
{| class="wikitable
|-
! scope=col | Years
! scope=col | Mass
! scope=col | Diameter
! scope=col | Thickness
! scope=col | Composition
|-
|1870–1919
|11.62 g
|29.72 mm
|n/a
|92.5% silver, 7.5% copper
|-
|1920–1967
|11.66 g
|29.72 mm
|n/a
|80% silver, 20% copper
|-
|1968–2000
|8.10 g
|27.13 mm
|1.93 mm
|99.9% nickel
|-
|2001–present
|6.90 g
|27.13 mm
|1.95 mm
|93.15% steel, 4.75% copper, 2.1% nickel plating
|}
Circulation figures
Victoria and Edward VII
thumb|right|1871 Canadian 50-cent coin
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year
! Mintage
! class="unsortable"| Notes
|-
| 1870
| rowspan=2 | 450,000
| rowspan=2 |
|-
| 1870 LCW
|-
| 1871
| 200,000
|
|-
| 1903 H
| 140,000
| rowspan=2 | The leaves on the reverse were slightly modified.
|-
| 1910 Edwardian leaves
|}
George V and George VI
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year
! Mintage
! ! class="unsortable"| Notes
|-
| 1911 no ""
| 209,972
| The words were removed from the obverse of the coin to make room for .
|-
| 1912 with ""
| 285,867
| "" was later restored in 1912 after public backlash for "godless" coins.
|-
| 1913
| 265,889
|
|-
| 1921
| Unknown
|
|-
| 1938
| 192,018
|
|-
| 1949
| 858,991
| rowspan="2"| This variety is also called with/without shoulder fold.
|-
| 1953 strap
|-
| 1954
| 506,305
| Small reverse design, complete coat of arms
|-
| 1960
| 3,488,897
| 2nd obverse portrait
|-
| 1966
| 7,920,496
| Canadian Centennial; this coin features a howling wolf and is dated 1867–1967.
|-
| 1968
| 3,966,932
|
|-
| 1969
| 7,113,929
|
|-
| 1978
| 3,341,892
| This figure includes the "square" and "round" jewels varieties.
|-
| 1979
| 3,425,000
| 3rd obverse portrait
|-
| 1991
| 490,000
| 125th anniversary of Confederation; this coin is dated 1867–1992.
|-
| 1993
| 393,000
| Revised Canadian coat of arms on the reverse
|-
| 1998
| 308,000
|
|-
| 2002 P (GJ)
| 14,440,000
| (1952–2002) Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee
|-
| 2003 P
|
| 50¢ coins minted since 2003 are not for circulation. The highest-graded specimen is graded by PCGS at MS-67 and was last sold (by Diverse Equities) in the year 2000 to a private collector for the US$400,000.