1921 5 Cent Coin

General discussions about canadian coins.
Post Reply
Tabbycat
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Oct 03, 2015 5:39 am

1921 5 Cent Coin

Post by Tabbycat » Thu Oct 08, 2015 9:09 am

Hello to everybody,

I am new here, and this is my very first post. I have been a coin collector on and off for more than four decades, and have been back at acquiring coins for several months now. I used to focus on mainly US coins, but lately have appreciated the beauty of coins from other parts of the world - including Canada.

I was just wondering if someone here would know why the 1921 five cent coin has such a high value? From what i have seen, over two million were made. So what is it that makes them so rare, and what gives them such high values? So far i have several of those tiny silver coins, but of course, NOT a 1921, lol. But i thought if anyone would know the answer to that question, it might just be available on a website such as this. I was simply curious - nothing more. Please accept my best wishes for everybody here! :)

Shylo
Posts: 213
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2013 10:42 pm

Re: 1921 5 Cent Coin

Post by Shylo » Thu Oct 08, 2015 8:32 pm

Hello tabby.. Welcome!

I'm sure a few others will chime in with the complete story but I will tell you what I know. Both the 5 cent and 50 cent coins are pretty key dates and it's sort of related to mintage or the RELEASE of the coins.

1920 was a pretty tough year in Canada with " the Great Depression " going on there really hadn't been much demand for coinage from the banks. (Banks used to place their orders with the bank of Canada to obtain coins for their customers). So while the mint made lots of 1921 coins few were actually issued as there was hardly any orders for coins. The coins stayed in a vault until there was once again a large number of orders, this didn't happen until late in 1928 at the end of the depression. And instead of issuing the 1921 coins which would've looked brand new and people would've been skeptical that they were fake the mint just melted down all the 1921 issues they had in stock and re-coined them into 1929 issues instead.

Bill in Burl
Posts: 1457
Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2008 7:41 am
Location: Golden Horseshoe, ONT

Re: 1921 5 Cent Coin

Post by Bill in Burl » Fri Oct 09, 2015 4:08 am

The scarcity exists because new coinage types/sizes started then. It also went to a slightly different portrait of George V, like GB. All 1920(and before) 5 cents were the small half-dime size and they were struck again in that size for 1921. However, it was decided that Canada would change to sizes mirroring the US and do away with the old penny and 5 cent sizes. All the silver 5 cents struck were melted down and a regular nickle-sized coin was issued, naturally made out of nickel. The "fishscales were no more. The large cent was also changed to a normal penny size for 1921. The dime & quarter remained the same.

For the economic reasons that shylo mentioned above, a kinda similar thing happened with the 50 cents as well. Although 200,000 plus were minted of the 50 cents, none were issued and actually hit the street ... it's estimated that there are only less than 100 known, probably snuck out or given as gifts. Since there was no demand for the 50 cent piece because of the times, the coins stayed in the vaults. In 1929, when the economy improved, they melted the 1921's and used the silver to make 1929's
Bill in Burl

Tabbycat
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Oct 03, 2015 5:39 am

!

Post by Tabbycat » Fri Oct 09, 2015 5:16 am

Thanks guys! I knew there had to be some logical explanations, and you provided them. I am the kind of person who likes it when things make sense, because far too often in the world in which we live, they don't.

I have been using your website as my primary guide for the grading and determining the values of the Canadian coins for several months now. This is the most comprehensive source of information regarding Canadian coinage available online, imho. Thanks again!

Shylo
Posts: 213
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2013 10:42 pm

Re: 1921 5 Cent Coin

Post by Shylo » Fri Oct 09, 2015 4:57 pm

Yes this is certainly one of the best web pages for canadian coinage.. with out a doubt...

PSPTrooper
Posts: 6
Joined: Tue Jan 19, 2016 8:09 pm

Re: 1921 5 Cent Coin

Post by PSPTrooper » Mon Jan 25, 2016 4:54 pm

If your using this sites coin values I think there was an error across the entire 1921 values. If you look again you may pick-up on that.

Post Reply