Unearthing the Hidden Gem

“A hidden gem.” That’s a comment we often hear from surprised and delighted visitors to our museum. Naturally we’re pleased to be considered a gem; but like other gems, we shouldn’t remain hidden for long! After all, we’re right in the middle of downtown Ottawa, a stone’s throw from both Parliament Hill and the Supreme Court of Canada, located smack dab in the centre of the nation’s central bank building.

In the late 1970s, the Bank of Canada building underwent an overall extension and renovation project, designed by the renowned Canadian architect Arthur Erickson. Part of this project was to create a public space in the form of a museum and a glassed-in atrium. On 5 December 1980, the Currency Museum of the Bank of Canada opened its doors to the public.

Inside the Museum, you’ll discover thousands of artifacts including coins, bank notes, and money-related paraphernalia from the National Currency Collection. The Museum exhibitions and educational programs provide a wide range of insights into the role and importance of money throughout history. Given our perspective as a museum devoted to the development of the Canadian currency system, we can’t help but explore the many ways that money, whether in the form of playing cards from New France or sawed off pieces of coin from the Newfoundland fishing centres, tells the story of Canada as a nation.