Canada Gold 1912 $5 And $10

In general there is very little interest in gold coins especially with bullion tanking at the moment. These gold coins were simply destroyed by the BOC release if you don't have one of the highest graded, you just have a bullion value coin and as I mentioned before took perviuosly own units and half their values, a great disservice to the hobby.

Thanks!, yes I've read discussion pertaining to the controversial release of this small portion of what is Bank of Canada's gold reserve and the melting of the rest of the coins. But I have to admit the historical component or why I might want to own one beyond the bullion went right over my head.

I also speculate the reason the interest is low is because many other collectors like myself who value the historical element of coin collecting also have no idea of the significance of the $5 and $10 Canadian gold coins, perfectly complimenting a King George V decimal collection.

Indeed AU or MS-60 was about the grade that I had in mind as well. I don't often get "hooked" into buying anything in particular and yes, as my mother always said "patience is a virtue".

I bought a 1912 $5 for the history of it as well, this is one of my favorite series of Canadian coins. If you were looking to buy and are not motivated by grade, I would probably go in the AU range, as MS-60 is often a relatively ugly coin, though technically un-circulated, where the AU range can be pristine, with only minor signs of rubbing.

I am a bit more optimistic on these coins than many on this board. If you were looking for a 1913-1914 $10 coin in MS-63 I would probably wait for a really good price, though I do frequently see them selling at the $950+ USD at auction, ebay seems to be at the lower end of the price scale. I do believe there is little upside for most of these coins, unless gold takes off again, but I don't see all of them at bullion value, unless MS-64+. The table below shows the maximum remaining mintage and where the BOC hoard was graded.



Personally, I like the BOC hoard coins for their luster and overall attractiveness, compared to some of the other non-BOC I have seen. The EF and lower grades, just don't have the same eye appeal for me and I hope to complete the set in these holders at some point in the future, but other collecting priorities for now.

Good luck in the hunt.

If you watch the PCGS video on the BOC coins, the famous Canadian dealers implies he bought or brockerd half of the 30000 units, and the collectors who owns the regular units had their values greatly reduced, mainly to bullion value so many have decided not to sell.

You are welcome wildflower, that is a neat way to remember the family history.

As for not on the market, I think there are quite a few out there at any given time, but not abundant, the hard ones to find are the ones in the BOC cases. I think the one's to be careful of are the 1913-1914 $10, with over almost 15k graded, I think someone (maybe a few people) are holding onto a huge stack that will be released over time. Not sure what kind of deal they got, but I seem to remember them not selling out at the mint in PHS, or at least not until the very end.

Indeed, as you mention John100, half or "15,000 went into the dealer market". Yeah I'd also suspect there are one or more holding back, intending to release a few over time because most of our other larger Canadian online dealers indicate they are Sold Out.

Torgemco that coin is so beautiful it makes my toes curl! I have a few $100 gold coins from the 70s and a 1967 $20 gold coin. But they don't have what can be best described as the true essence of gold.

Paxbrit, but to talk to a dealer is advice that I will heed. I'm also within easy travelling distance to either Edmonton or Calgary and that's a good place to start.

Thanks for all the suggestions --- I love the hunt!

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John100, indeed after watching this video I certainly that agree there are valid concerns about the way in which the sell-off was managed. (And as an aside, I also happened to notice another video posted July 21, 2015 "Canada-Sold-Off-Gold-Reserves 2015". If that is true, then Canada also sold off the reserve of the hoard, melted or otherwise.)

Although I don't know the exact dollar amount, leading up to 2012 when gold was near peak, rough calculations, the hoard must have been worth in or around $1 billion. Yet this entire deal seems to be shrouded in a huge veil of secrecy.

As a casual observer, just some thoughts/questions that come to mind:
Why did BOC choose RCM as the avenue for sales of the 30,000 considering they are not in the business of selling 100 year old coin originally issued for circulation whatsoever.

Why didn't the BOC tender out the arrangements of the sale? Isn't public tender a requirement by Federal Crown Corporations, For Profit or not, in this era of transparency?

Obviously because RCM does not employ coin grading experts, another party was required to sort through the entire hoard in order to maximize profit and select the 30,000 to be sold. This video gives a pretty good indication as to who that party was. But was the contact for the selection process tendered? And if not, what was the arrangement for compensation and how was the party selected? I'm not sure if either BOC or RCM are subject to Freedom of Information legislation (and yes, it's far easier to ask questions than find the answers...)

Then toss in PCGS, who obviously are closely connected as well, by virtue of this video alone, along with their special labelling. The exact nature of that involvement is also questionable. Why didn't BOC originally tender a grading company and then facilitate the sale through RCM to include only graded coins (instead of hand picked - who's "hand" gets the first pick?)?

Lastly, who's decision was it to sell half to the public and half to dealers, and how does anyone really know if the numbers added up?

It sure seems to be that this entire saga has huge potential for back door dealings.

I'm not sure if CCF is the proper venue for collaboration toward what steps might be taken to pursue the matter further. But if enough members are interested, I fully agree that it warrants further investigation and sometimes it takes only a handful of people to pry open a small crack in the door.

I am not sure what their costs were, but they were selling gold at $2000/oz for HS and $3500/oz for PHS, with a dollar at par and gold at $1600/oz, that seems like a decent premium to me. I would assume that getting them TPG'd would have been an expensive proposition and for what added value from the RCM's perspective?

The vast majority of the coins selected came in at MS63-64, so I think they did a pretty good job of selecting. As to whether a few people were able to cherry pick, I would assume yes, just like any other dealer disposing of a hoard. I think the only people that really lost out here were existing owners of 1912-14 Canadian gold, but that is the danger of coin collecting, when dealing with relatively expensive coins, a key risk is that someone shows up to market with a hoard of previously rare coins and value drop.

Personally I am very happy with how the sale was handled, I was able to acquire some coins that I would not normally have purchased, as a reasonable price. The BOC was able to disperse a valuable part of Canadian history to interested parties (everyone had the chance to purchase) and they likely did so at a profit. I wish I had the funds at the time to buy a full set. The only sad part of this, is the destruction of 210,000+ old Canadian coins.