2005 Canada $8 Fine Silver Coin – Canadian Pacific Railway 120th Anniversary: Railway Bridge (Gilt, NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo)

An unusual denomination with a meaningful story, in a near-perfect certified grade. This 2005 $8 fine silver coin marks the 120th anniversary of the Canadian Pacific Railway's completion, and its $8 face value is no accident — eight is the luckiest of numbers in Chinese culture, chosen to honour the more than 15,000 Chinese workers whose labour drove the railway through its most dangerous stretches. The reverse depicts a CPR train crossing a soaring mountain trestle bridge, richly gold-plated against proof silver fields, with Susanna Blunt's effigy of Queen Elizabeth II gilded to match on the obverse.

This example is certified by NGC as PF 69 Ultra Cameo — one point from perfection, with deeply frosted devices over mirror fields — and sealed in its NGC holder (certification 3837391-001).

Collector Specifications

• Country: Canada
• Year: 2005
• Denomination: $8
• Composition: 99.99% Pure Silver with selective gold plating
• Weight: 32.15 g
• Diameter: 40 mm
• Finish: Proof — NGC certified PF 69 Ultra Cameo
• Edge: Serrated
• Certificate: NGC certification 3837391-001 (encapsulated in NGC holder)
• Condition: NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo — near-perfect proof
• Mintage: 20,000 (issued as a two-coin set with the Chinese Memorial design)
• Designer: Royal Canadian Mint engravers (reverse); Susanna Blunt (obverse)

Historical Significance

The last spike of the Canadian Pacific Railway was driven at Craigellachie in 1885, binding a young country together — but the mountain sections that made it possible were built largely by Chinese labourers who faced the most perilous work for the lowest pay, with hundreds losing their lives in the canyons of British Columbia. Issued 120 years later, this coin and its companion piece stand among the Royal Canadian Mint's most poignant commemoratives: a tribute struck in silver and gold to the workers the railway's history long overlooked.

Why We Love This One

The $8 face value is a tribute to the Chinese workers who built the railway, and that story makes this coin special. Graded PF 69, it's about as close to perfect as it gets.

Please note: this item is sold as is, including its packaging. The photos show the exact piece you will receive.