Four stylised figures with sticks, two of them locked in a tackle: this is how Japanese graphic artist Shigeo Fukuda portrayed field hockey on the silver 10-dollar coin Canada issued for the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal.

The coin belongs to the Royal Canadian Mint’s Olympic programme: between 1973 and 1976 it released 28 silver coins in 5- and 10-dollar denominations, grouped into seven series, and sales helped finance the Games. Field hockey is part of the sixth series, devoted to team and body-contact sports; its 10-dollar partner shows soccer, also drawn by Fukuda.

Shigeo Fukuda (1932–2009) was a Japanese graphic designer, sculptor and poster artist famous for his optical illusions. His economy of line is plain to see: the players are reduced to bold silhouettes, accompanied by the Olympic emblem and the inscriptions «Olympiade XXI Olympiad» and «Montréal 1976». The obverse carries Arnold Machin’s portrait of Elizabeth II with the legend «ELIZABETH II CANADA».

The Montreal hockey tournament made history of its own: it was the first Olympic event played on artificial turf, and New Zealand took a surprise gold, beating Australia 1–0 in the final. The coin fills a place in an Olympic collection, a sports-themed selection or a complete set of the 28 Montreal silver coins.

Graded UNC, the coin never circulated: there is no wear, the original lustre remains, and only minor storage marks are possible. On a large silver coin with such delicate artwork that matters most, as the silhouettes and lettering read exactly as the designer intended.

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