is a 1960 canadian nickel silver

[GenevieveFitz]

It's a fantastic question and a very common point of confusion for collectors. You might think that older coins are automatically silver, but a 1960 Canadian five-cent piece is actually not made of silver. Its value comes from its collectibility, not from any precious metal content.

The key clue is right in the name of the coin itself. As pricing guides like Greysheet confirm, the official name is the "Canada 1960 Nickel Five Cent Coin." This isn't just a nickname; it refers to its composition. These coins were made of 99.9% nickel from 1955 through 1981, so your 1960 coin is solid nickel.

The idea that Canadian coins from 1964 and earlier are silver, as mentioned in the Facebook discussion, generally applies to other denominations like the dime, quarter, half-dollar, and dollar. Those coins did contain silver, but the five-cent piece has been primarily made of nickel for a much longer time. It's a classic case where the rule for one set of coins doesn't apply to all of them, which can easily trip up even experienced hunters. So, while you have a great vintage coin, it is made of nickel, not silver.