This weekend I went on a tour of the Royal Canadian Mint in Ottawa and hoisted a $300,000 gold bar in my hands.
The link here has it valued at $200,000. The page must be a couple of years old!
What surprised me a bit was that Canada makes coinage for many other countries around the world.
The Royal Canadian Mint has produced coinage for over 74 countries: Centavo’s for Cuba, Fils for Yemen, Pesos for Colombia, Kroner for Iceland, Rupiah for Indonesia, Baht for Thailand, and a thousand-dollar coin for Hong Kong. Other nations include Barbados and Uganda. The Winnipeg production branch of the Royal Canadian Mint is definitely one of the largest and most elaborate minting operations in the world.
When you are collecting coins from around the world, you are really picking up Canadian coins.
The mint is renowned for its attention to detail and craftsmanship.
The location itself seemed a bit dank & dark, though it could just be the tinted windows looking into the shop floor. It didn't appear to be a fun place to work, however, the tour guide told us many of the employees have been here for decades and greatly enjoy and take pride in their work.
It is a bit strange that the failures of these employees are worth much more than their successes.
Here are some links to this and other mints around the world.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mint_(coin)
The Winnipeg Mint, where circulation coins are minted, is shown below.
I wonder when they are going to take the lead of the Post Office, and allow Canadians to mint coinage with their own designs.
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