Early North American Currency at Toronto Coin Expo

Do you study those pieces listed in the first section of the Charlton Standard Catalogue of Canadian Coins? Many collectors of our nation’s currency seem to ignore this section, jumping right to provincial coinage or even those struck by the Province of Canada in 1858, leaving these important pieces hugely under-appreciated. Canada’s history didn’t begin […]

Error Banknotes in our Toronto Coin Expo 2019 Spring Sale

Errors are something out of the norm. They stand out as something that wasn’t meant to be and that makes them interesting, and sometimes valuable, to collectors. Banknote errors are not meant to be released to general circulation, but despite the Bank of Canada’s best efforts, some escape to become sought-after anomalies for us numismatists. […]

Governor General Medals for Toronto Coin Expo

The role of Canada’s governor general is varied; formally, the governor general acts on behalf of the Sovereign, Canada’s Head of State. It shouldn’t be a surprise that the role has evolved over the years, especially given that this position predates Confederation by a long time. The governor general’s own website declares that Samuel de […]

Who Surprised in Paris?

Geoffrey Bell Auctions Ltd. kicked off 2019 with its Paris in February Sale, part of a biannual auction held in conjunction with the Paris Coin Show, and this eager crowd didn’t disappoint. The numbers were good across the board, but the strongest performers were fancy serial numbered banknotes, pre-confederation tokens, and some American coins. A […]

Paris in February Spotlight: Canadian Bank of Commerce

In the publication the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce put out to celebrate their 150th anniversary, while our country was enjoying its own sesquicentennial, they note they opened for business as the Canadian Bank of Commerce in May of 1867, just before the confederation of Canada, but in a way, the bank is the original […]

Leroux Well-Represented in Paris

Joseph Leroux was one of the pioneers of Canadian numismatics. On the cover of his 1888 book, The Canadian Coin Cabinet, he stated that, “This work has been honoured with a subscription from the French government,” and he also put that statement on the reverse of his promotional medals, so it seems only fitting that […]

Historic Offering of Early Canadian Coins

Coins of the French Regime are some of the most important pieces of history in Canadian numismatics and Geoffrey Bell Auctions Ltd. is pleased to announce the sale of the largest specialized collection of coinage for the French Colonies of North America ever to appear at auction, in conjunction with the Toronto Coin Expo, May […]