The Milk Delivery Token Triangle Coin, a 2008 silver proof 50 cents coin from Canada.

 

True to the shape of the token which inspired this unique coin, the Royal Canadian Mint has struck its very first triangular coin, the 2008 Milk Delivery Token Silver Proof Triangle Coin, featuring a milk bottle and a Holstein cow.

Many Canadians have fond memories of a uniformed milkman delivering bottles of fresh dairy to their childhood homes. From the late 19th century to the 1960's, consumers could buy dairy tokens to "pay" for the milk or cream that was delivered. Most dairies had their own unique tokens, often brightly colored like this eyecatching triangular coin.

Pre-Confederation tokens disappeared from circulation after the 1870’s and were replaced by new Canadian coinage. Still, local merchants continued to issue variously shaped trade tokens, exchangeable for a number of goods and services, like bread, milk or a shave. Though their use declined after the Second World War, some tokens, like those used in today’s public transit systems, have withstood the test of time.