Bizarre Canadian Coins

[jtryka]

Ok, so I admit I like a lot of the Canadian coins that the RCM is making, I got hooked with the $20 for $20 program, but recently there was just a bizarre e-mail I received. So a while back I saw they had this set of 4 square coins that were 1/4 ounce of pure 0.9999 fine silver each but they were selling for $204 CDN which I thought was excessive for an ounce of silver. Then today I got an e-mail saying this set was 1.6 ounces of silver, which I thought was strange since each coin said "1/4 ounce argent pur" but apparently each coin contains 11 g or so of pure silver, which is more than the 8g or so in a quarter ounce. And apparently the RCM is good with this since they contain at least as much or more of what's engraved on the coins.

 

Now I'm used to corrupt governments bastardizing and devaluing their currency, so that a silver dollar no longer is defined as 26.7295 g of pure silver, but when did governments decide that 1/4 ounce no longer needed to mean 1/4 ounce? What's next an 8" foot or a, 1800 yard mile? This just seems insane to me, and begs the question, can you trust a maple leaf having an ounce of silver?

[DC Dawg]

I am on the RCM mailing list but have not received that email. Do you have a link to their website pointing to the coins they are selling?

[RWB]

Troy vs avoirdupois ?

[porcupine48]

i was hoping for updare..

[jtryka]

Sorry for the delay, here is a link to the set:

 

1/4 ounce maple set

[WillieBoyd2]

Square coins are harder to smuggle out of the mint.

 

[e1cnr]

Do tis come covered in plastic?

 

The black velvet will create some cool toning on toe reverse proof coins.

 

 

the $120/oz price seems excessive, but they say only 7500 sets..

[jtryka]

Yes. but they state "1/4 ounce" but they DO NOT CONTAIN 1/4 OUNCE! That's the big issue!!!

[Conder101]

But they do contain AT LEAST 1/4 oz which is what they are promising. Still to be as far off as they are is not good, even if it was deliberate. Frankly they could have avoided the whole thing by just marking them 1/4 Maple Leaf and leaving off the oz.