2016 Canadian $25 Sculptural Art of Parliament: Grotesque Horned Green Man - Fine Silver Ultra-High Relief Coin

2016 Canadian $25 Sculptural Art of Parliament: Grotesque Horned Green Man - Fine Silver Ultra-High Relief Coin

Face Value: $25
Mintage: 4,000
Composition: 99.99% Silver
Weight (g): 30.75
Diameter (mm): 36
Finish: Proof

The horned variation of the Green Man on your coin is much more common on North American Gothic Revival structures than on their European counterparts. Their horned projections vary from short or long straight horns and curled ram’s horns to antlers and even large tree branches emerging from the Green Man’s forehead. The source of this imagery may lie with pre-Christian nature deities such as the Celts’ Cernunnos, the Greeks’ Pan, and the Egyptian goddess Hathor, but one should not discount the role of the carver’s sense of humour or delight in the macabre. The horned Green Man’s popularity seems to have grown in tandem with Victorians’ rising preoccupation with the occult, which is perhaps not surprising given that the horned man or horned god has long been associated with supernatural power.

A unique gift to your collection of Canadian, historical, or artistic themes. Order today!

Special features:
Third and final coin featuring a carved image from the Centre Block of Parliament, reinterpreted by Dominion Sculptor Phil White, in ultra-high relief. Canadian sculptor and art conservator Phil White has been Canada’s official Dominion Sculptor since 2006.
ULTRA-HIGH RELIEF! Your coin’s ultra-high relief profile lends dramatic depth to the image. Royal Canadian Mint engravers worked closely with the Dominion Sculptor to interpret the designs, including reviewing the tools and techniques that would have been used to carve this type of art in stone. Each coin has been carefully crafted to remain faithful to those original techniques.
LOW MINTAGE! A low mintage of only 4,000 of each coin means this series is sure to be sought after by collectors.
99.99% PURE SILVER! Crafted in 99.99% pure silver, your coin is GST/HST exempt!

Design:
Engraved in ultra-high relief, the reverse features an original depiction by Dominion Sculptor Phil White of a Gothic-style grotesque interpreted from a carving found on the Centre Block of the Parliament Buildings. The humorous, slightly unsettling horned Green Man sticks out his tongue, his grimacing mouth topped with a jaunty moustache. His face is encircled by stylized foliage and his deep-set eyes peer from below heavy brows. Two small goat-like horns curl out from his forehead.

The buildings that make up Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada represent some of the world’s most important examples of the Gothic Revival architectural style. The Centre Block, East Block, and West Block combine elements of this style, born in Medieval Europe, in a way that is uniquely Canadian—applying Canadian imagery and materials to the Gothic form’s characteristic buttresses, pointed archways, and extensive stonework. Canadians might be surprised to learn that there are thousands of works of carving and sculpture in and on the Parliament Buildings (about three thousand on the exteriors alone). This work includes sculptures of mythical animals and Canadian flora and fauna; decorative and ornamental carvings on doors, spandrels, and panels of stone and wood; wrought iron figures, finials, and grates; coats of arms and badges; high- and low-relief panels depicting historical figures and events (including a 16-panel frieze exploring 25,000 years in the history of the Canadian landmass and nation); busts, statuary, and likenesses; elaborately decorated vault ceilings; stunning stained glass works; and untold numbers of carved maple leaves.

The buildings also feature hundreds of grotesques, or carved fantastical ornamental figures, in wood and stone—a key feature of Gothic Revival architecture. One of the most common motifs for these decorative carvings is the Green Man, a figure found not only in Medieval architecture but also on the structures of earlier civilizations in the Middle East, India, and Asia. While the Green Man’s precise symbolism varies, he is nearly always associated with seasonal cycles, fertility, creativity, and renewal.

Packaging:
Your coin is encapsulated and presented in a Royal Canadian Mint-branded maroon clamshell with a black beauty box.