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    Collage, photo of wild west street, old bank notes, old counterfeiting brochure.

    Security is in the bank note

    Security printing is a game of anticipating and responding to criminal threats. Counterfeiting is a game of anticipating and responding to bank note design. This cat and mouse relationship affects every aspect of a bank note.

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A Field Trip to Montréal and the MTM Auction: 1

By: Paul S. Berry


November 2, 2016

Paul’s odd Saturday morning

This is the first of a two-part blog concerning our Chief Curator’s shopping trip to a Montréal auction house. It is one of his tasks to help grow the National Currency Collection of the Bank of Canada Museum.

It’s 5:10 Saturday morning. Some song on the radio rips me out of a pleasant sleep. I quickly whack the snooze button so as not to disturb my wife and then slump down again into my pillow only to be startled five minutes later by Justin Bieber…I think.

Saturday, 14 May 2016 and it was not the usual start to my weekend. Instead of rising early, reading for a couple of hours and then enjoying a leisurely breakfast, I was up, showered, shaved, dressed, in a cab and then on a bus heading for Montréal.

Why was I doing this? MTM International, a collectibles store on Sainte-Catherine Street East, was holding a two‑day auction featuring numismatic rarities from the seminary of Nicolet. (former Catholic college near Trois-Rivières, Quebec, opened early 1800s) The sale included the largest assemblage of French Regime paper money auctioned in Canada, including several items that were not in the National Currency Collection. In previous weeks, following notice of the sale, I had viewed the offerings online, identified pieces of interest and determined what we could afford.

Montréal from Mount Royal. Attending the auction personally is the best route to auction success.

I could have participated from Ottawa, by sending in advance mail bids or bidding live online on the day of the auction, but in this business it is important to know your competition and to be seen to be a participant: two things you cannot accomplish from the comfort of home. So, here I was on the bus, book in my lap and, fortunately, nobody beside me smelling of yesterday’s garlic‑rich dinner.

The bus pulled into the Berri Street station on‑time at 10:30. I boarded the Metro for a fast trip to Papineau station two stops east. As I exited the station, I could see MTM International directly across the road. I went into the sale room to register for the auction and examine the notes on my wish list. While auctioneers do their best to identify problems with material, things occasionally go unnoticed, so it is best to avoid surprises by personally inspecting the lots in advance.

The catalogue is often the first chance a bidder gets to see the items up for auction.

The sale room was a hive of activity. About 20 people sat at tables scrutinizing lots, heads bent down with magnifying glasses pressed close to their faces. Two guards who looked very capable of dealing with “incidents” kept watch. Staff scurried behind the tables fetching objects, adjusting lights, setting out snacks or connecting terminals to receive online bids. To the left of the tables was the auction floor itself with its podium, large screens and seating for about 120 people. It was quiet but for a few, small isolated groups having private conversations. This was all about to change.

I later took a seat at the back of the room to get a good view of anyone who might bid against me. At 1:00 pm sharp the auctioneer called the room to order and everyone fell silent. After a few introductory remarks he called out the first lot: a group of military medals and decorations awarded to two former lieutenant governors of Quebec.

When people register for an auction in person, they are given a bidder’s card to identify themselves when bidding. Each bidder is given a unique number for that auction.

I didn’t have long to wait for the French colonial paper money. Within five minutes, the competition was on for lot #12, a piece of card money worth 6 livres dated 1729. Bidding was slow to start, almost hesitant, as buyers felt their way, getting a sense of the competition and not wanting to be overly aggressive and bid too much money. Everyone looks for a bargain even though they know what to expect. The pre‑sale catalogue had conservatively estimated the value of each card at between $5,000 and $10,000 and up to $15,000 for a card in better condition.

I wasn’t bidding on this piece but I could sense the anticipation in the air as prospective buyers watched attentively the auctioneer’s movements. Dealers standing at the back of the room spoke to clients on their cellphones, relaying where the auction stood and bidding on their client’s behalf. Staff at computer terminals called out online bids. Gradually, the bids quickened and the momentum built, growing first by $50 increments, then $100, then $500—and then it was over. After calling a third a final time for additional bids, the auctioneer struck his hammer against the podium and shouted “Sold for $7,500”—a bargain, in my opinion, given the card’s rarity and historical significance. I thought “Wow, I won’t have any trouble buying what I came for.”

How wrong I was!

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Content type(s): Blog posts

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March 22, 2023

Security is in the bank note

By: Graham Iddon


Collage, photo of wild west street, old bank notes, old counterfeiting brochure.
Security printing is a game of anticipating and responding to criminal threats. Counterfeiting is a game of anticipating and responding to bank note design. This cat and mouse relationship affects every aspect of a bank note.
Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): Economy, Financial literacy Grade level(s): Grade 07 / Secondary 1, Grade 08 / Secondary 2, Grade 09 / Secondary 3, Grade 10 / Secondary 4, Grades 11 and 12 / Secondary 5 and CEGEP
February 2, 2023

Teaching art with currency

By: Adam Young


From design to final product, bank notes and coins can be used to explore and teach art, media and process.
Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): Arts, Education Grade level(s): Grade 05, Grade 06, Grade 07 / Secondary 1, Grade 08 / Secondary 2, Grade 09 / Secondary 3, Grade 10 / Secondary 4, Grades 11 and 12 / Secondary 5 and CEGEP
January 20, 2023

New Acquisitions—2022 Edition

By: David Bergeron, Krista Broeckx


It’s a new year—the perfect time to look back at some notable artifacts the Museum added to the National Currency collection from 2022. Each object has a unique story to tell about Canada’s monetary and economic history.
Content type(s): Blog posts
December 6, 2022

Money: it’s a question of trust

By: Graham Iddon


Photo collage, parking meter, old bank notes and an early bank card.
The dollars and cents we use wouldn’t be worth anything to anybody if we didn’t have confidence in it. No matter if it’s gold or digits on a hard drive, public trust is the secret ingredient in a successful currency.
Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): Economy
November 14, 2022

The day Winnipeg was invaded

By: David Bergeron


People on the street were randomly stopped and searched, and some were even arrested and imprisoned in an internment camp. Even German marks replaced Canadian currency in circulation—in the form of If Day propaganda notes.
Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): History Grade level(s): Grade 10 / Secondary 4, Grades 11 and 12 / Secondary 5 and CEGEP
October 18, 2022

Positive notes

By: Krista Broeckx


The imagery on the Bank of Canada’s 1935 note series depicts the country’s rich industrial history.
Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): History
June 16, 2022

Army bills: Funding the War of 1812

By: David Bergeron, Graham Iddon


In 1812, British North America had no banks and little currency. With the prospect of war drying up supplies of coins, the government of Lower Canada decided to issue legal tender notes called “army bills” to pay for troops and supplies.
Content type(s): Blog posts Subject(s): Economy, History
May 5, 2022

Between tradition and technology

By: Graham Iddon


Collage, man at an easel, paintings of birds and a goose illustration with comments written on it.
What was proposed was a complete about-face from the philosophy behind recent security printing. If photocopiers could easily deal with the colours and designs of the current series, then the next series should be bold and simple.
Content type(s): Blog posts

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