Mint wins second international award for innovation in less than a month!
Ottawa, Ontario, November 19, 2013 – The Royal Canadian Mint is proud that its 2012 25-cent face value “glow-in-the-dark” Prehistoric Animals collector coin won the Krause Publications 2014 Coin of the Year award in the Most Innovative Coin award category. This recognition of the Mint’s leadership in innovation will be formalized in Berlin, Germany on February 8, 2014, when the award will be presented at the internationally-renowned World Money Fair. The Mint was also honoured to receive nominations in the following categories: Most Historically Significant Coin; Best Gold Coin; Best Silver Coin; Best Crown Coin; Best Circulation Coin; Best Bi-Metallic Coin; and Most Inspirational Coinage.
“The Mint is committed to finding new ways to innovate in all aspects of our business to benefit its Canadian and world-wide customers and to maintain our commercial success in a highly competitive environment,” said Ian E. Bennett, President and CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint. “By recognizing our unique glow-in-the-dark colouring technology as the best coin innovation of 2012, this Coin of the Year Award elevates our reputation a world leader in advancing the art and science of coin manufacturing.”
A global phenomenon when it launched in March 2012, the 2012 25-cent Prehistoric Animals – Pachyrhinosaurus Lakustai collector coin was the world’s first-ever photo-luminescent coin. Based on the discovery of a new species of dinosaur from a fossil found in the province of Alberta, a painted image of a living Pachyrhinosaurus Lakustai on a cupronickel coin cleverly disguised the skeleton of this prehistoric animal which brightly glowed only once the coin was placed in darkness. Subsequent releases in this “glow-in-the-dark” series have all rapidly sold out.
The annual Coin of the Year competition receives nominations from an international consortium of mint representatives and numismatists. The judging is conducted by an international panel of the world’s leading mint officials, medalists, journalists, central bank and museum officials.
This is the second international award for innovation received by the Mint over the last month. On October 29, 2013, the advanced security features developed by the Mint for Canada’s new multi-ply plated steel $1 and $2 circulation coins received the International Association of Currency Affairs’ Best New Coin Innovation Excellence in Currency Award as the world’s most significant coin security advance of the year.
About the Royal Canadian Mint
The Royal Canadian Mint is the Crown Corporation responsible for the minting and distribution of Canada’s circulation coins. An ISO 9001-2008 certified company, the Mint is recognized as one of the largest and most versatile mints in the world, offering a wide range of specialized, high quality coinage products and related services on an international scale. For more information on the Mint, its products and services, visit www.mint.ca.
About Krause Publications
Iola, Wisconsin-based Krause Publications, a division of F+W Media, Inc., is dedicated to serving antiques, collectibles, outdoors, hunting, and numismatics enthusiasts with trusted content, industry news, and pricing information. Today, the antiques & collectibles division includes books, ebooks, periodicals, and online destinations NumisMaster.com and ShopNumisMaster.com. The F+W Media portfolio offers books, ebooks, magazines, ecommerce sites, education, conferences and events, serving nearly 20 enthusiast communities. www.fwmedia.com.
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For more information, please contact:
Alex Reeves
Senior Manager, Communications
(613) 949-5777
reeves@mint.ca