The Canadian 5 Cent Coin - The Canadian Nickel

The first Canadian Nickels were nicknamed "fish scales" because of their tiny size, and gleaming silver appearance. This Canadian sterling silver 5 cent coin weighed in at about one gram in weight, and measured around 15.5 mm in size. These tiny 5 cent Canadian silver coins really did resemble a fish's scales and so rightfully deserved their nickname.

The first Canadian five cent coins featured the image of England's reigning monarch on one side and the image of a pair of maple boughs on the other side from 1858 till 1921 when the nickel was upgraded to receive a more modern appearance.

In 1922 the Canadian five cent coin under went a major updating. The Canadian nickel's dimensions increased to 21.21 mm in size and it's weight increased to 4.54 grams.

The metal composition of the Canadian 5 cent piece also changed. The silver nickel was now replaced with a ninety-nine percent composition of the much lower valued metal nickel. This is how the term "Nickel" came to describe the new Canadian five cent coin.

In 1937 the industrious beaver was added to the Canadian five cent piece. This beaver image was designed by G.E. Kruger-Gray, and is an image strongly reminiscent of Canada's historical beginnings, as well as the Canadian Hudson's Bay Company.

The image the maple leaves on this new version of Canada's five cent coin also changed from two entwined maple boughs to the simple image of two maple leaves.

In 1942 Canada's five cent coin changed once again. With nickel being required for the manufacture of metals used in the war effort the nickel used in the Canadian five cent coin was suddenly extremely precious. From 1942 to 1946 the metal used in the Canadian 5 cent coin was comprised of a specially prepared brass known as Tombac.

A victory symbol was proudly displayed on each of these Canadian war time nickels. This gave the Canadian 5 cent pieces minted during these years the nickname of "Victory Coins".

A little known fact about these Canadian victory nickel coins is that from 1943 to 1945 these 5 cent coins had a special Morse code message etched into the outer edge of each coin. The Morse code message on the Canadian nickel is, "We win when we work willingly".

In 2005 a special Canadian anniversary 5 cent nickel with the victory symbol was minted to celebrate the sixtieth year after the end of World War ll.

A celebratory 5 cent Nickel was minted in 1951 to proudly proclaim Canada as the worlds largest producer of nickel. This 5 cent coin featured the image designed by Stephan Trenka of a nickel refinery.

In 1967 a lucky rabbit was featured on the Canadian Centennial five cent coin. This hopping rabbit image on Canada's Centennial nickel was designed by Alex Colville.

Since 1908 England's reigning Monarch has been pressed onto one side of all Canadian coins minted at the Royal Canadian Mint.

It is these Monarchs who gracefully rest on the face of each Canadian nickel:

1902 and 1910 it is the image of Edward Vll
1911 to 1936 it is the image of George V
1937 to 1952 it is George V1
1953 to present day it is Queen Elizabeth.

The Canadian One Cent Coin - The Canadian Penny
It is known as a penny, a copper, and a one cent coin. The first Canadian pennies featured England's reigning Queen Victoria on one side, and the image of tw...

The Canadian Two Dollar Coin The Canadian Twonie Toonie
Canada's first two dollar coin came into circulation on February 19, 1996. Introduced as an economical solution to replace Canada's paper two dollar bills th...

The Canadian 25 Cent Coin - The Canadian Quarter
The Canadian 25 cent coin is famous for making history in 2004 when its unique design gave the Canadian quarter the distinction of being the World's firs...

The Canadian 10 Cent Coin - The Canadian Dime
In 1858 the first Canadian ten cent coin was introduced within Canada. It's monetary value was set at one tenth of a dollar, and it proudly featured Engl...