2003 Canada Elizabeth II 1 Cent (4th portrait, magnetic)

About the 2003 Canada Elizabeth II 1 Cent (4th portrait, magnetic)

Struck by the Royal Canadian Mint in a composition of 94% steel with 1.5% nickel and a 4.5% copper plating, these coins look like traditional copper cents but are drawn readily to a magnet, a property that lets collectors separate them from nonmagnetic counterparts produced alongside them. The obverse features the portrait by Canadian artist Susanna Blunt, which depicts the Queen without a crown, a notable departure from earlier crowned effigies and the first Canadian coinage portrait of the monarch created by a Canadian. It is accompanied by the legend ELIZABETH II D·G·REGINA. The reverse retains the enduring design by George Edward Kruger Gray showing 2 maple leaves on a single twig, a motif that has made the Canadian cent instantly recognizable for generations. For collectors, this type is significant both as a record of the transition in royal portraiture and as evidence of the shift toward plated steel coinage, and the distinction between magnetic and nonmagnetic pieces adds a compelling layer of study to any set of Canadian cents from the reign of Elizabeth II.