The 1949 Canada Silver Dollar

There’s something about sailing ships on coins that I have always loved. I can’t even describe what it is – though I think growing up near beaches and coming from a family with Mayflower-delivered New England roots (read: pictures of sailing ships in my childhood home) predisposed me to having an affinity for nautical imagery. I have tastes of it in my own home today, right down to nautical glass floats and pictures of lighthouses. I also pay homage to grand sailing vessels in my coin collection. And there are many coins from around the world that sport sailing ships. One of my favorites is the 1949 Canada Dollar – one of the many Canadian silver dollars minted from 1935 through 1967 that are so popular with collectors.

The 1949 Canada Dollar with the grand sailing ship on the reverse honors the admission of Newfoundland to the Canada Confederation as the nation’s 10th province. The coin shows a large boat floating above the words FLOREAT TERRA NOVA, meaning “May the new land flourish.” The beautiful vessel on the 1949 Newfoundland Commemorative Dollar reverse, designed by Thomas Shingles, is the Matthew.

Why is this particular ship shown? In 1497, it carried Italian explorer John Cabot to the shores of what became known as Newfoundland. The claim goes that Cabot was the first European to lay eyes on Newfoundland since the Vikings reached the territory around 1000 A.D. Cabot’s voyage to Newfoundland precipitated British claims to the region in the centuries that followed. Newfoundland, which became a British crown colony in 1854 and a British dominion in 1907, was declared a Canadian province on March 31, 1949, after public votes.

The 1949 Canada Dollar, which carries an obverse portrait of King George VI by T. Humphrey Paget, was struck to the tune of 672,218 pieces, a relative handful of which are specimen strikes; there are also prooflike examples out there. The coin is categorically common in circulated grades, though in top Mint States grades it is rare, as are specimen strikes.

In fact the highest price achieved for the 1949 Canada Dollar to date was the single-finest known specimen strike, graded PCGS SP67+. It hammered for $8,812.50 in a 2014 Heritage Auctions sale. While high-end 1949 Canada Dollars are true numismatic treasures, any of these classic Canadian silver dollars are right at home on the PCGS Set Registry, where collectors can show off their 1949 Canada Dollars and other coins to the public in a safe and exciting environment. All this talk about the 1949 Canadian silver dollar makes me want to spend some time admiring my specimen!