Commems Collection Canadian: 1976 Library Of Parliament Centennial - Silver Dollar

The Royal Canadian Mint's annual Silver Dollar (SD) commemorative for 1976 celebrated the 100th Anniversary of the completion of the Library of Parliament building; the Library was established by Parliament in 1871. The Library building is located at the rear of the Centre Block of the Parliament Building on Parliament Hill in Ottawa. The building was designed by Thomas Fuller and Chilion Jones.

Library of Parliament Building

(Image Credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Public Domain.)

In 1916, the Parliament Building was largely destroyed by fire, but the Library was spared thanks to its separating hallway and iron doors. The safeguards kept the Library safe as the fire swept through the adjoining building.

The commemorative reverse of the coin depicts the Library of Parliament building with "CANADA" and "DOLLAR" flanking the building and the dual dates "1876-1976" below it; the design is the work of Walter Ott. The obverse features the Arnold Machin portrait of Queen Elizabeth II (engraved by Patrick Brindley).

The SD's planchet has a composition of 0.500 Silver and 0.500 Copper. Its diameter is the traditional (for Canada) 36.07 millimeters, and its weight is 23.30 grams. The coin has a reeded/serrated edge; it was struck in medal alignment (i.e., the obverse and reverse are in the same orientation vs. facing opposite directions).

Mintage for the Library of Parliament SD was, as in previous years, limited to the number of orders received. The coin, however, did not prove to be as popular as the 1975 Calgary Centennial SD as its final order total/mintage came to 483,722 (vs. >830K for the Calgary SD). The Issue Price for the SD was $4.00 (CAD)

The SD was encapsulated and placed in a black styrene frame which was subsequently inserted into a black clamshell case with red interior; the interior of the case's lid featured the inscription "Library of Parliament" in English and French, along with "1876-1976". The case was inserted into a white cardboard outer sleeve with the Coat-of-Arms of Canada printed in orange on its top panel.

1976 Library of Parliament Centennial - Commemorative Reverse


1976 Library of Parliament Centennial - Clamshell Case

(Image Credit: Royal Canadian Mint. Media Image.)

1976 Library of Parliament Centennial - Outer Sleeve

(Image Credit: Royal Canadian Mint. Media Image.)

The 1976 Library of Parliament SD is often available for sale in today's marketplace. I would suggest seeking out an example that is unimpaired and includes its original packaging - such a coin shouldn't be that difficult to locate.

The coin was also available in a special package for members of Canada's Parliament. You can read more about it - and see images of it - in a past thread by SilverDon here: 1976 Library Of Parliament Silver Dollar With VIP Case.


For more of my topics on commemorative coins and medals, including more Canadian commemorative stories, see: Commems Collection.