Royal Canadian Mint

2 dollars

6,99 g

28 mm

Outer ring: three-ply nickel finish plated steel; inner core: three-ply brass finish plated aluminum bronze

2 000 000 pcs

Pad printing

Bill Reid

Royal Canadian Mint

The reverse design features a detailed engraving of Xhuwaji / Haida Grizzly Bear by renowned Haida artist Bill Reid on the inner core which flows onto the outer ring. On the top portion of the outer ring, two images of a maple leaf appear within the line pattern. A banner at the bottom of the outer ring bears the inscriptions “BILL REID” in honour of the 100th anniversary of the Haida artist’s birth, while “2020” is centred between two security marks that consist of a maple leaf within another maple leaf. 

A symbol of strength for the Haida Indigenous nation from Canada’s Pacific Northwest coast, Bill Reid’s beloved grizzly bear first appeared on a ceremonial drum crafted in 1988 by the Sam family of Ahousat, B.C. Two years later, Reid adapted the design for reproduction as silkscreen prints, with proceeds benefitting the Artists for Kids Trust. The male grizzly bear figures prominently throughout Reid’s body of work. Here, its flared nostrils suggest fierceness while the extended tongue represents the oral storytelling traditions of the Haida Nation.