2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie
The 2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie is a circulating toonie. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2021
- Circulation mintage
- Not published
- Value band
- Face value
- Designer
- Jesse Koreck
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 2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie worth?
the 2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie 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
- Colored versions from collector packs
- Specimen or proof finish from a Mint set
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie rare?
- No. It was made in large numbers, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie coins were made?
- The Royal Canadian Mint has not published a circulation figure in our source.
- Who designed the 2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie?
- The design is credited to Jesse Koreck.
- What is the 2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie made of?
- Bimetallic multi-ply plated steel. It weighs 6.92 g and measures 28 mm.
- Is the 2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie still legal tender?
- Yes. Every toonie, commemoratives included, is legal tender in Canada.
Why the 2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie was made
In 1921 Frederick Banting and Charles Best began experiments at the University of Toronto that led to the discovery of insulin. Working with John Macleod and the biochemist James Collip, who helped purify the extract, they produced a treatment that could keep people with diabetes alive. Before insulin, a diagnosis of type 1 diabetes was effectively a death sentence. In January 1922 a 14-year-old boy named Leonard Thompson became the first person to receive an insulin injection in Toronto and his recovery changed medicine.
Banting and Macleod received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1923 and shared their prize money with Best and Collip. Insulin has since saved millions of lives around the world and is still one of the proudest achievements in Canadian science. For the 100th anniversary the Royal Canadian Mint issued this toonie, an unusual subject for a circulating coin and one of the few to celebrate a scientific achievement. No circulation mintage is given for it in the source for this page, though it was released into everyday change in the normal way.
How to recognize it
Jesse Koreck's design is a scientific collage. In the core, a monomer, the building block of the insulin molecule, sits with instruments used in the early work: a vial, a mortar and pestle and an Erlenmeyer flask, all overlaid on a maple leaf. Red blood cells, glucose and insulin molecules appear around them. The outer ring carries the word 'insulin' in English and French, with the dates 1921 and 2021 on its upper part. Look for the flask and the molecular shapes to confirm the design. The other side carries Susanna Blunt's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, as on Canadian circulation coins of that year. Laboratory glassware is an unusual sight on a circulating coin, which makes this one stand out in a handful of change.
2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie by the numbers
The Royal Canadian Mint has not published a circulation figure for the 2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie in our source, so it cannot be ranked against other toonies yet.
What to check on your 2021 Discovery of Insulin Toonie
- Confirm the design: the Discovery of Insulin reverse dated 2021, in a silver-colored ring with a gold-colored center.
- Check whether it has added color. Colored toonies came from collector products or special circulation releases; keep them out of rough handling.
- Look at the join between ring and core. It should be tight and even; a loose or damaged core is damage, not a rarity.
- Specimen and proof toonies from Mint sets have satin or mirror finishes that circulation coins never have.
The source gives no circulation mintage, so there is no figure to set beside other toonies. The coin was released into everyday change and circulated examples are face value. The tiny molecules and cells are the finest details on the coin and they are the first to fade, so check them under a light when judging condition. A sharp coin with full mint luster can bring a small premium from people building the set. This toonie also has an audience beyond coin collectors, since people living with diabetes and those who care for them often keep one as a keepsake of a discovery that changed their lives.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 2 dollars |
| Issuer | Royal Canadian Mint |
| Year | 2021 |
| Circulation mintage | Not published |
| Composition | Bimetallic multi-ply plated steel |
| Weight | 6.92 g |
| Diameter | 28 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Intermittent milling |
| Designer | Jesse Koreck |
Frequently asked questions
What is on the insulin toonie?
A monomer of the insulin molecule with a vial, a mortar and pestle and an Erlenmeyer flask over a maple leaf, plus blood cells and molecules. The ring shows 'insulin' in English and French with the dates 1921 and 2021.
Who discovered insulin?
Frederick Banting and Charles Best began the work at the University of Toronto in 1921, with John Macleod and James Collip. Banting and Macleod received the 1923 Nobel Prize. The 2021 toonie marks the 100th anniversary.
Mintage figures: Toonie (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Canadian Mint figures. How we build these pages.