PCGS Certifies Previously Unknown Gold Coins

The Sherritt Mint and Sherritt Gordon Mines importance in the field of numismatics has been greatly overlooked. Located in Fort Saskatchewan in Alberta Canada, the Mint was an offshoot of the Sherritt Gordon Mines. The mines started in the 1920s as a copper mining business but moved to nickel after the copper mines were exhausted. By the 1940s, the mines were forced to refine their nickel due to other facilities opting to refine their own ore. This diversification became a theme for the mines future success. In the 1950s, the mines started producing rolled nickel strips for radio manufacturing. When Canada faced a nickel shortage for production of five-cent coinage, Sherritt Gordon Mines were able to produce blanks from the nickel strips. After reviewing samples, The Royal Canadian Mint ordered 10 million blanks from the mines to be used to produce Canadian five-cent coins. With this order, the mines greatly expanded their production and manufacturing outputs

The Sherritt Gordon Mines business boomed with the manufacturing of blanks for Canada. In 1961, just over two million blanks were delivered. Production increased to 29 million in 1962, 43 million in 1963 and 83 million in 1964. The mines also began to market blanks to other countries which resulted in the production of nickel blanks for South Africa as their coinage transitioned. In 1966, Sherritt bought a coining press and went into the coining business under the name of Sherritt Mint. This continued their success with the production of commemorative medals and coins for Lebanon and Syria in 1968. The Mint would produce blanks and coins for countries around the world in many metals.

Recently, coinage samples from the Sherritt Mint archives surfaced out of Canada. These coins, consigned to auction, were submitted to PCGS for certification. This archive included the following:

(3) Lebanon 1975 50 Piastres struck in gold. The coins graded PCGS SP67, SP68 and SP69.

PCGS SP67. Pop 1. Click to enlarge.

(2) Lebanon 1975 Livre struck in gold. Each graded PCGS SP68.

PCGS SP68. Pop 2. Click to enlarge.

(2) Syria AH1394-1974 5 Piastres struck in gold. Each graded PCGS SP69.

PCGS SP69. Pop 2. Click to enlarge.

(2) Syria AH1394-1974 10 Piastres struck in gold. The coins graded PCGS SP68 and SP69.

PCGS SP68. Pop 1. Click to enlarge.

(2) Syria AH1394-1974 25 Piastres struck in gold. Each graded PCGS SP69.

PCGS SP69. Pop 2. Click to enlarge.

(2) Syria AH1394-1974 50 Piastres struck in gold. The coins graded PCGS SP68 and SP69.

PCGS SP68. Pop 1. Click to enlarge.

(1) Syria AH1391-1971 Lira struck in gold. The coin graded PCGS SP67.

PCGS SP67. Pop 1. Click to enlarge.

(2) Canada 1970 F.A.O. 25th Anniversary Medal struck in gold. Mintage 60 pieces. Each graded PCGS SP69.

PCGS SP69. Pop 2. Click to enlarge.

(1) Canada 1971 "Amor de Cosmos" British Columbia medal in gold. Gold mintage 50 pieces. Graded PCGS SP68.

PCGS SP68. Pop 1. Click to enlarge.

(1) Colombia 1968 200 Pesos International Eucharistic Congress commemorative. Graded PCGS PR69DC.

PCGS PR69DCAM. Pop 1. Click to enlarge.

(2) Syria AH1394-1974 Lira struck in gold. Each graded PCGS SP69.

(2) Philippines 1970 gold Peso KM-202b. Mintage of 1,000 pieces. Each graded PCGS MS68 and MS65.

These archived coins are of incredible significance being previously unknown in gold off-metal strikes. Certification by PCGS allows the coins to be preserved for the future as well as noting the pedigree that they did come from the mint archives. The coins will go up for auction in Stephen Album Rare Coins Auction 35 on September 12-14, 2019.

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