Lot 561: 2000 CANADIAN $2 POLAR BEAR KNOWLEDGE MILLENNIUM PROOF GOLD & SILVER COIN .185 oz Gold

2000 CANADIAN $2 POLAR BEAR KNOWLEDGE MILLENNIUM PROOF GOLD & SILVER COIN

Matron of the ice

Immense…pristine…untamed… the polar bear personifies the land it calls home – Canada. The largest non-aquatic carnivore in the world, its strength and sheer size commands respect – and with seemingly human behaviour, Nanuk is higly revered by Inuit society. Indeed, the ability of this solitary animal to thrive in one of the harshest environments in the world fills one with awe and wonder. Even more surprising perhaps is the fact that the polar bear is classified as a marine mammal because its primary habitat is the frozen sea ice and its survival depends almost exclusively on the seals that swim below it.

This ice dweller also dispels another common notion – that all bears hibernate during the winter. Only the female polar bear maintains this practice and she does so in order to nurse her young during their first four months of life. Usually two cubs are born, each weighing less than a kilogram (1 to 1.5 lb) and will remain part of the Arctic landscape for some twenty years.

Design

For the new millennium, artist Tony Bianco illustrated a female polar bear and her two cubs to represent the transfer of knowledge from one generation to the next. The inscription on the coin’s outer rim reads “Knowledge – Le Savoir.” This was the only “tails” design to appear on the 2000 two-dollar circulation coin. The inner core is composed of 22-karat gold (91.67% gold, 4.1% silver, 4.23% copper), outer ring of 4.1 karat gold (17.2% gold, 77.6% silver, 5.23% copper).

Packaging

2000 Canadian $2 Polar Bear Knowledge Millennium Proof Gold & Silver Coin is encapsulated and presented in a Royal Canadian Mint original oval clamshell case. Includes Certificate of Authenticity and black Millennium box.

Specifications

Face Value: $2
Mintage: 5,881
Ring Composition: 17.2% Au, 77.6% Ag, 5.2% Cu, 4.1Kt
Core Composition: 91.7% Au, 4.1% Ag, 4.2% Cu, 22Kt
Weight (g): 11.40
Diameter(mm): 28.00