Then and Now –No.1– The Victory Nickel
The Victory Nickel was first created first in 1943, as part of Canada's Allied war effort. This nickel, or more appropriately "5 cent piece", was created for a number of reasons. Foremost, a severe lack of the metal Nickel – a much needed resource for war production, led the mint to use other less useful metals (hence its Copper/Zinc construction). It was produced each subsequent year until the Great War ended and again in 2005 for the 50th Anniversary of Victory in Europe.
Hidden in the coins design are a number of interesting items. The inner edge of the coin is bordered with a serious of dots and lines - Morse Code. When read it says "We Win When We Work Willingly" – enough W's for you? Well we're not done with the letter W quite yet. It turns out that Winston Churchill used a V shaped double finger salute as his salute to Victory.
An original 1945 Victory Nickel next to the 2005 commemorative edition.
Additional Resources
- Wikipedia article on the Canadian Nickel (5 cent piece)
- Royal Canadian Mint page for the 50th Anniversary Victory Nickel
- Additional history on the nickel by cnews
May 29, 2007
12:43 pm
Morris Code.. or Morse Code?
Jul 12, 2007
5:08 pm
Morse it is, consider the article edited.
Jun 1, 2008
2:57 am
Hey, I have one of these. An original 1945 one... Saw it in my change when I bought a slice of pizza.
Jun 2, 2008
9:06 pm
I'd hang onto it Bryan. They're pretty historoic. Some guy replaced my picture on wikipedia with a professional one. :(
Jul 31, 2008
10:44 pm
an 1945 nickel would cost how mutch today?
Aug 3, 2008
7:52 pm
About 5 cents... it's monetary value hasn't caught up to its historic value.
Sep 17, 2008
6:22 am
I've got a sweet 1943 Canadian "V" ,any clues as to what that's worth?
Oct 1, 2008
2:44 am
I got a 1944 "V" nickle..the year I was born..I wonder how to find out the value?
Nov 27, 2008
1:59 pm
yeah i just fond one last night druing mu shift and i guess its value ant much, it has a strong purruse
Apr 28, 2009
11:19 am
Apparently, the 1943 Canadian "V" nickel came in two finishes...copper, and steel. There were only 8000 of these made, and only 1 currently known of...it recently sold for $38,500 US.
May 4, 2009
11:21 am
Ihave a 1943 morse code nickel and i was wondering what it is worth to a collectorCan someone please tell me a ball park figure?
May 4, 2009
11:23 am
i forgot to mention it ia a copper 5 cent piece