Obverse: The obverse of the coin depicts Queen Elizabeth II and her English name "ELIZABETH II".
Reverse: The reverse depicts the sailing ship "GRIFFON", the coin denomination "DOLLAR" and the country "CANADA" at the top, and the date "1679-1979" and the name of the sailing ship at the bottom.
About the coin: The coin commemorates the 300th anniversary of the sailing of the Griffon, the first full-sized sailing vessel on the upper Great Lakes. The ship disappeared on its way back from its maiden voyage, and its whereabouts have remained a mystery ever since.
