1983 Canada Elizabeth II, 12 sided 1 Cent BU

About the 1983 Canada Elizabeth II, 12 sided 1 Cent BU

The type also introduced a lighter and thinner flan, reflecting the Royal Canadian Mint's efforts to control production costs as copper prices rose. The obverse bears Arnold Machin's portrait of Elizabeth II, the second effigy of the Queen used on Canadian coinage, showing her with a tiara and a mature, dignified expression. The reverse keeps the beloved maple twig design by George Edward Kruger Gray, a motif that had graced the Canadian cent since early in the reign of George VI and that remains a national emblem on the denomination. Struck in bronze at the Royal Canadian Mint in Winnipeg, the type appeals to collectors because of its unusual polygonal shape, its ties to accessibility in coin design, and its place in the evolution of Canada's smallest coin. Specialists often look for well struck examples showing crisp detail on the veins of the maple leaves and on the Queen's hair and tiara, as well as varieties and die characteristics that set individual pieces apart within this short lived but historically meaningful series.