One-year Centennial reverse
Centennial One Cent: Rock Dove
Alex Colville's rock dove in flight replaced the maple-leaf twig for Canada's 1967 Centennial and carries the dual dates 1867–1967. It is a distinct one-year circulation type, not a maple-twig subtype or mint error.
Scope is limited to the verified type or program level. Issue mintages, prices, varieties, and survival estimates are not inferred from this summary.
Major one cent types
Know the boundary before the date
The reverse shows a rock dove in flight, the denomination, and the dual dates 1867–1967. The obverse carries Elizabeth II. The Mint's applicable standard is 3.24 g, 19.05 mm, 1.65 mm thick, and 98% copper with 0.5% tin and 1.5% zinc. A maple-leaf-twig reverse is not the 1967 Centennial cent described here.
- Primary identifiers — Reverse: Rock dove in flight with dual dates 1867–1967. Obverse: Elizabeth II portrait.
- Authority and dates — Canada; recorded range 1967.
- Evidence boundary — Unknown specifications remain unknown; unverified varieties, mintages, and prices stay outside the public catalog.
The historical scope of Centennial One Cent: Rock Dove
The Royal Canadian Mint identifies the coin as part of Colville's special Centennial set of circulation designs commemorating the 100th anniversary of Confederation. Its temporary national-program role explains why the reverse differs from the standard cent without being an error, trial, or permanent redesign.
The catalog places this record in the One cent branch, records its material scope as 98% copper, 0.5% tin, 1.5% zinc, and records its finish as circulation. Those fields are supported by the sources listed below; missing issue-level transitions are not filled by inference.
- 1967 · Centennial dove — Alex Colville's rock dove became the only issued break in the twig reverse.
Design and identification
The reverse shows a rock dove in flight, the denomination, and the dual dates 1867–1967. The obverse carries Elizabeth II. The Mint's applicable standard is 3.24 g, 19.05 mm, 1.65 mm thick, and 98% copper with 0.5% tin and 1.5% zinc. A maple-leaf-twig reverse is not the 1967 Centennial cent described here.
- Centennial cent · rock dove · 1967 · Alex Colville — For Canada's Centennial, a rock dove in flight temporarily replaced the maple-leaf twig and the dates read 1867–1967.
Finish by checking the edge (plain), composition (98% copper, 0.5% tin, 1.5% zinc), and any recorded dimensions or weight; colour or wear alone is not enough for attribution.
Official annual production
The Mint reports 345,140,645 one-cent pieces for 1967. Because the rock dove is the issued cent reverse for that year, the annual row belongs to this type.
Displayed-row sum: 345,140,645 · 1 official annual row
Three anchors that do not depend on price
- 1967 · Centennial rock dove — Alex Colville's bird and dual dates distinguish this national commemorative issue at a glance.
Specifications within this type
1942–1977 · Round
- Composition
- 98% copper, 0.5% tin, 1.5% zinc
- Weight
- 3.24 g
- Diameter
- 19.05 mm
- Thickness
- 1.65 mm
Official annual production catalog
The Mint reports 345,140,645 one-cent pieces for 1967. Because the rock dove is the issued cent reverse for that year, the annual row belongs to this type.
| Year | Design context | Technical context | Mintage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Centennial rock-dove cent | 19.05 mm · 3.24 g | 345,140,645 |
Collecting paths and checklist
This type provides a natural fourth stop in a major-design cent set after the large cent, two-maple-leaf small cent, and standard maple-twig cent. The Mint reports an annual mintage of 345,140,645 for 1967. That production number does not determine condition rarity or value, and this page does not attach a price without market and grade evidence.
- One-coin type study — Choose one representative that clearly shows the principal obverse and reverse, then learn the type boundary.
- Design and technical generations — Add a generation only when sources confirm a change in composition, shape, size, edge, or principal design.
- Source-backed date study — Expand into dates or varieties only after issue identity, specifications, and production evidence are verified field by field.
Collector checklist
- Do not clean the coin; cleaning changes surfaces and can obscure evidence.
- Compare date, portrait, design, edge, weight, diameter, and metal response together.
- Have consequential or high-value attributions reviewed by an appropriate specialist or certification service.
- Catalog information is research context, not an appraisal, offer, or investment guarantee.
Two source conflicts remain visible
The Royal Canadian Mint technical table gives 25.4 mm for 1908–1920 large cents, while the Bank of Canada Museum narrative says the pre-1920 coin shrank from 24.4 mm. This page uses 25.4 mm in the specification table because it is the Mint's explicit technical value and does not silently merge the discrepancy. The Mint denomination page and 2012 report spell the 1911–1920 contributor “Blackmore”; the Royal Mint Museum and another Mint product record identify the resident engraver as W.H.J. Blakemore, the spelling used here.
Sources
- 1 centRoyal Canadian Mint
One-cent reverse designs, designers, technical generations, annual mintages from 1908 through 2012, and the end of production in 2012.
- Whatever happened to the penny? A history of our one-cent coinBank of Canada Museum
The 1858 introduction, Ottawa production, 1920 size change, 1936 dot coins, design transitions, metal changes, final 2012 strike, withdrawal, and rounded historical production total.
- Australian pattern florinRoyal Mint Museum
W.H.J. Blakemore's name spelling and role as a resident engraver at the Royal Mint.
- One cent coins of CanadaWikimedia Commons
High-resolution, license-documented visual references for the 1858, 1920, 1937, and 1967 reverse identities used to ground the project-owned editorial hero composite.
- Government of Canada and Royal Canadian Mint bid farewell to the Canadian pennyGovernment of Canada
Penny phase-out chronology and final distribution in February 2013.
- A History of the Canadian DollarBank of Canada
Decimal adoption, 1858 coinage, 1870 Dominion coinage, provincial issues, Newfoundland, and mint history.