Coins hold much more than their monetary value. For a long time, coins have been a part of every civilization. The creation of each coin design in influenced by the era it represents, or the year of its mintage. In Canada’s history, coins were designed after the monarchial rule.

In 1936, King George V’s throne was ascended by his son, Edward VIII. During this year, the Royal Canadian Mint continued to produce coins with the effigy of the deceased monarch. In the late months of that year, the new coin dies bearing the effigy of King Edward were developed and were at an advanced stage. However, because King Edward VIII abdicated the throne on December 1936, the Mint encountered problems regarding their coin dies. The coin die bearing King Edward III’s effigy was negated and was later not used. This resulted to a shortage of coins the following year, 1937.

To resolve this coin crisis, the Royal Canadian Mint decided to continue producing 1936 dated coins, which still featured the side profile of George V. In order to determine these 1937-minted coins from their 1936 coins, a tiny dot was placed on each of the reverse dies. In the ten-cent pieces, the dot was placed under the bow on the wreath. Later on, only the 25-cent pieces were put into circulation.  This resulted to higher rarity value to the one- and ten-cent pieces.

One of these 10-cent pennies was acquired by the famous coin collector, John Jay Pittman. The first owner was Ottawa coin collector Tom Roberts, but after his death in 1951, his wife sold his coin collection to Pittman for $2,000.

Now, after Pittman’s death in 1996, the coins were auctioned off. Because of its extreme rarity, it was sold at a 2010 coin auction for over $184, 000.

Coin collection is not just a hobby. It may also be considered a profession. The 1936 Canadian Dot Dime is only one of the examples of how coin collecting can be a good source of profit if done right. Rare coins are appreciated highly for their rarity, and for serious coin collectors—it’s a real job to hunt for these precious coins.

One of the contributing factors of successful coin collectors is trusting a partner numismatic shop. Colonial Acres Coins have been partners with many coin collectors since they have opened the business for more than a decade now and are reputed for trustworthy service. So, if you want to enter the world of coin collection, let Colonial Acres Coins accompany you every step of the way.