Canadian 5-cent coin · 1942 - 1963
The 12-sided coin
5-cent coins were made of nickel from 1921 to 1942. However, nickel's importance in the production of war materials demanded the development of another metal for coinage. Tombac, a kind of brass, was chosen as the replacement and was used until 1946. The 5-cent coin featured 12 sides to distinguish it from the 1-cent coin.
What a coin with this design is made of
Every 5-cent coin carrying this design falls outside the years the Mint records a silver-bearing composition for. There is no silver in any of them, so there is no melt value to work out. What one of these is worth depends on condition and on the date, and this site does not publish figures for either.
Across the years the Mint reports for this design, 380,873,892 5-cent coins were struck.
Denomination
The only Canadian denomination that stopped being silver in 1921 rather than in the 1960s. Everything from 1922 onward is a base metal coin, and the metal changed five times.
What these sell for
Completed sales, newest first, so you are looking at what buyers paid rather than what sellers are asking. Affiliate link: we may earn a commission if you buy, at no cost to you, and it changes nothing on this page.
Every year of this design
| Year | Composition | Silver | Mintage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1942 | 99% nickel; or 88% copper, 12% zinc (tombac) | none | 10,243,778 |
| 1943 | 88% copper, 12% zinc (tombac) | none | 24,760,256 |
| 1944 | chrome plated steel | none | 11,532,784 |
| 1945 | chrome plated steel | none | 18,893,216 |
| 1946 | 99.9% nickel | none | 6,952,684 |
| 1947 | 99.9% nickel | none | 17,198,848 |
| 1948 | 99.9% nickel | none | 1,810,789 |
| 1949 | 99.9% nickel | none | 13,736,276 |
| 1950 | 99.9% nickel | none | 11,950,520 |
| 1951 | 99.9% nickel; or chrome plated steel | none | 12,642,641 |
| 1952 | chrome plated steel | none | 10,891,148 |
| 1953 | chrome plated steel | none | 16,635,552 |
| 1954 | chrome plated steel | none | 6,998,662 |
| 1955 | 99.9% nickel | none | 5,355,028 |
| 1956 | 99.9% nickel | none | 9,399,854 |
| 1957 | 99.9% nickel | none | 7,387,703 |
| 1958 | 99.9% nickel | none | 7,607,521 |
| 1959 | 99.9% nickel | none | 11,552,523 |
| 1960 | 99.9% nickel | none | 37,157,433 |
| 1961 | 99.9% nickel | none | 47,889,051 |
| 1962 | 99.9% nickel | none | 46,307,305 |
| 1963 | 99.9% nickel | none | 43,970,320 |