2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie
The 2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie is a circulating loonie. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2022
- Circulation mintage
- Not published
- Value band
- Face value
- Designer
- Christopher Gorey
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie worth?
the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie is easy to find. A circulated one is worth face value; collectors pay a little more only for uncirculated coins.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition
- Specimen or proof finish from a Mint set
- Colored versions sold in collector packs
- A genuine mint error
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie rare?
- No. It was made in large numbers, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie coins were made?
- The Royal Canadian Mint has not published a circulation figure in our source.
- Who designed the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie?
- The design is credited to Christopher Gorey.
- What is the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie made of?
- Multi-ply plated steel. It weighs 6.27 g and measures 26.5 mm, with an 11-sided shape.
- Is the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie still legal tender?
- Yes. Every loonie, commemoratives included, is legal tender in Canada.
Why the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie was made
Alexander Graham Bell was born in Edinburgh in 1847 and moved with his family to Canada as a young man. Best known for the telephone, he spent much of his later life at Baddeck, Nova Scotia, where he kept experimenting. There his team flew the Silver Dart in 1909, the first controlled, powered flight in Canada. Years later his HD-4 hydrofoil set a world water speed record on Bras d'Or Lake. Bell died at Baddeck in 1922. He also did important work teaching deaf students, a lifelong interest shared with his mother and his wife, both of whom were deaf.
In 2022 the Royal Canadian Mint issued a loonie for the 175th anniversary of his birth, which also fell a century after his death. The coin was released into circulation, but no circulation mintage figure was published. It came out the same year as the Oscar Peterson loonie, so two different commemoratives could turn up in change. What sets this coin apart is its focus on Bell's work in Canada rather than the telephone, which makes it a fresh take on a familiar name.
How to recognize it
Christopher Gorey's design pairs a portrait of Bell with a reproduction of his signature. Around him are schematic illustrations of the Silver Dart and the record-setting HD-4 hydrofoil. Both made history on Bras d'Or Lake, which is represented by waves that are highlighted in blue on the colored coin. To confirm the issue, look for the signature, the aircraft and the hydrofoil, plus the date 2022. Its obverse, struck in the final year of the Queen's reign, uses Susanna Blunt's portrait. The fine schematic lines are easiest to read under a magnifier. It is one of the most technical looking loonies, almost like a page from an engineer's notebook.
2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie by the numbers
The Royal Canadian Mint has not published a circulation figure for the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie in our source, so it cannot be ranked against other loonies yet.
2022 brought 1 other circulating loonie design.
What to check on your 2022 Alexander Graham Bell Loonie
- Confirm the design and date: the Alexander Graham Bell reverse dated 2022. The 11-sided shape and gold color make a loonie easy to tell from other coins.
- Check whether it has added color. Colored versions come from collector packs, not from change. Keep them in their packaging.
- Look for even plating. Worn spots that show a different metal underneath are normal wear, not an error.
- Specimen and proof loonies from Mint sets have mirror or satin finishes that circulation coins never have.
No circulation mintage was published, so there is no official figure to compare. Any worn example from your change is a face value coin. The design exists plain and with blue waves, so check which version you hold. The color sits on the waves at the bottom and rubs off with handling, so complete blue is the version to keep. Uncirculated examples with sharp schematic lines can bring a small premium. If yours came in a card or sealed holder, it was sold as a collector product rather than taken from change.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 1 dollar |
| Issuer | Royal Canadian Mint |
| Year | 2022 |
| Circulation mintage | Not published |
| Composition | Multi-ply plated steel |
| Weight | 6.27 g |
| Diameter | 26.5 mm |
| Shape | 11-sided |
| Edge | Plain |
| Designer | Christopher Gorey |
Other 2022 loonies
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 Oscar Peterson Loonie | – | Face value |
Frequently asked questions
What aircraft is on the Alexander Graham Bell loonie?
It is the Silver Dart, which made the first controlled, powered flight in Canada in 1909. The coin also shows the HD-4 hydrofoil and both made history on Bras d'Or Lake in Nova Scotia.
Is the Bell loonie still in circulation?
Yes. It was released into circulation in 2022 and remains legal tender. No circulation mintage was published, but worn examples found in change are face value coins. It works in payments like any other loonie.
Mintage figures: Loonie (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Canadian Mint figures. How we build these pages.