The Klondike Gold Rush, a turning point in Canadian mining history, and the prospecting methods used to find gold first discovered in Yukon’s famed Bonanza creek in 1896, are being remembered on a new Royal Canadian Mint 99.999% (5-9s) pure gold bullion coin. This new issue, illustrating the operation of a traditional sluice box, is the second coin in a series of 1 oz. 5-9s pure gold coins commemorating “the last great gold rush” that forever transformed Canada, Yukon and the lives of the Indigenous people who have inhabited the land for millennia.
This bullion coin, made of the world’s purest gold, was launched in Toronto, Ontario, at PDAC 2022, the world’s premier mineral exploration and mining conference hosted by the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada. It is on display at the Royal Canadian Mint booth and will soon be available through the Mint’s network of official bullion distributors.
The Reverse of the 2022 $200 1 oz. 99.999% Pure Gold Coin Klondike Gold Rush
“Prospecting For Gold” is designed by Canadian artist Steve Hepburn, who has illustrated a wooden sluice box in action, filled with “paydirt” from which precious gold flakes and nuggets are being carefully separated. The background of the reverse and obverse features a precisely engraved array of radial lines that have become a defining characteristic of Mint bullion coins. The coin’s security is also enhanced by the Mint’s distinct micro-engraved maple leaf mintmark, showing the number 22 to correspond to its year of issue.
The Mint’s latest 5-9s pure gold bullion coin is presented in richly designed credit card-style packaging that includes a certificate of purity signed by the Mint’s Chief Assayer.
For more information, visit the Royal Canadian Mint website.
In 2021 the Royal Canadian Mint issued a 1 dollar commemorative circulation coin to the Klondike gold rush.
If you are interested in gold rushes, we recommend our three-part series Gold Rush in California: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3.
And did you know that there was even a gold rush in Finnish Lapland?
