FIRST in the NEW SERIES of animal architects, the home of this unique insect, the honeycomb hive of the honey bee, graces this beautiful, affordable pure silver proof in full color! The Royal Canadian Mint releases the very first in the new Animal Architects Series. Of silver proofs, the Honey Bee and his honeycomb hive! America’s vast wilderness is home to thousands of animal species; among these are the builders – some of natures most talented and fascinating creatures. From bird nests to beaver dams, honeycombs to anthills, the structures designed and created by these animal architects. Are models of structural strength and intricacy that have inspired human building in fields such as architecture and engineering. A Colorful, Dramatic Design! The innovative new Animal Architects. Program combines outstanding design and engraving with the Mint’s proprietary colorization. Technology to dramatic and artistic effect! The design, by Canadian artist Yves Bérubé, features a full color. Honeybee standing atop a flower blossom, its head bowed to collect the precious nectar that will sustain its colony. This tiny pollinator is layered over an embossed honeycomb whose perfectly symmetrical hexagons cover the polished field. The low mintage limit of only 10,000 and the extremely affordable price guarantee a quick sell-out of this artistic. Proof featuring an unique animal. The Honey Bee: Amazing Insect Engineer. The beehive, home to the honeybee, is built around an amazing structure, the honeycomb. This superb construction is a mathematically perfect matrix of hexagons that optimizes spatial coverage while minimizing the amount of construction material required for building – a feat of engineering efficiency that is virtually unmatched! The species of honey bee found in Canada, is an important pollinator. To create 500 grams of honey, the honeybee hive must collect nectar from approximately one million flowers – an astonishing number that means that the honey bee, not native to Canada but introduced here about 300 years ago, plays a critical role in natural and commercial plant propagation. But the honey bees amazing talents extend far beyond this vital task. Using a communication system based around pheromones and behavioral signals like their famous dances, these champion team players of the insect world have a rigidly organized social structure that enables them to build and supply a living environment whose internal symmetry has been the envy of mathematicians for thousands of years. The colony itself is composed of three groups: workers, drones, and the queen. Scouted in advance by worker bees, hive locations tend to be in the cavities of trees, but also of rocks and occasionally in hollows of buildings and other man-made structures. Once the location is selected, the bees work together to build their new home before escorting their queen there. Beginning at the top of the cavity, the bees construct their hive comb by comb, layer by layer. The upper part of the hive is reserved for honey storage. Pollen is stored in the rows of cells beneath this. Lower down are the cells where new workers and drones are bred. The queens quarters are at the bottom. The hive is composed of parallel honeycomb layers made of hexagonal cells that are one of natures most mathematically precise animal-built constructions. The individual cell walls are formed from secreted wax that is arranged into perfect hexagons whose six walls, each of exactly the same width, meet at precisely 120 degrees. The cells themselves are angled slightly upwards to help contain the honey, pollen, larvae, and eggs they are made to hold. A low mintage of only 10,000, intricately colored. Consider too the unique animal subject – how many honey bee coins are there out there, anyway? We see a bright future for this intriguing insect silver proof! Technology Note – Color. Silver Proof features the Royal Canadian Mints patented colorization technology. The RCM leads the world with its proprietary colorization technology, in which the color is actually sealed on the coin. The intricate detail, smooth gradients, and extreme precision of the technology create a stunning, full-color portrait on each coin. Technology Note – Purity. The Royal Canadian Mint refines the purest silver in the world. The RCM is also the only mint in the world to issue commemorative coins in a. This silver proof coin is 99.99% pure! Colorful honeybee harvests nectar from a flower. Its architecturally marvelous honeycomb hive is in the background. The date and denomination are also indicated. Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II of England. In profile facing right. This portrait, the fourth effigy of the queen to appear on Canadian coinage, was executed by the artist Susanna Blunt. The legend ELIZABETH II D. REGINA (“Elizabeth II, Queen by the Grace of God”) also appears. The coin is encapsulated inside a burgundy leatherette, clamshell-style presentation case, lined with black velvet and protected by a black outer sleeve. An individually-numbered certificate of authenticity is included. 9999 Fine (Pure) Silver. Canadas vast wilderness is home to thousands of animal species; among these are the builderssome of natures most talented and fascinating creatures. From bird nests to beaver dams, honeycombs to anthills, the structures designed and created by these animal architects are models of structural strength and intricacy that have inspired human building in fields such as architecture and engineering. Click here for the new series of coins featuring the beautiful and intriguing dragonflies! The beehive, home to the honeybee, is built around an iconic structure: the honeycomb. This amazing construction is a mathematically perfect matrix of hexagons that optimizes spatial coverage while minimizing the amount of construction material required for buildinga feat of engineering efficiency that is virtually unmatched. Apis mellifera, the species of honey bee found in Canada, is an important pollinator. To create 500 grams of honey, a honeybee must collect nectar from approximately one million flowersan astonishing ratio that means that the honey bee, not native to Canada but introduced here about 300 years ago, plays a critical role in natural and commercial plant propagation. Scouted in advance by worker bees, hive locations tend to be in the cavities of trees mostly but also of rocks and occasionally in hollows of buildings and other man-made structures. Once the location is selected, the bees work together to build their amazing home before escorting their queen there. The hive is composed of parallel honeycomb layersamazing structures comprising hexagonal cells that are one of natures most mathematically precise animal-built constructions. This structure is even more amazing when considered three-dimensionally. The back wall of each cell is trihedral, with adjacent pairs of planes also meeting at 120 degrees. The closed back wall of one honeycomb layer forms part of the side walls of the next layer, and so on, each comb nesting perfectly into the next for maximum structural integrity. Though the drones are expelled before the colonys winter rest, the workers and queen bee can live up to 4 years in their amazing home. Talisman World Coins and Medals has been in business for more than 20 years and is one of the largest world coin direct distributors and wholesalers in the world. The item “Canada 2013 Animal Architects 1 Honey Bee Honeycomb + Hive $3 Pure Silver Proof” is in sale since Sunday, April 07, 2013. This item is in the category “Coins & Paper Money\Coins\ Canada\Commemorative”. The seller is “talismancoins” and is located in Saint Louis, Missouri. This item can be shipped worldwide.

• Circulated/Uncirculated: Uncirculated
• Country of Manufacture: Canada
• Composition: Silver
• Year: 2013