Whilst trawling through the Canadian Heritage Directorate of Movement C files amongst the thousands of trucks ( only engine nos. given ), motorcycles, Sextons and Carriers ( census numbers given ), spares and other wartime parafernalia I found this unusual purchase. Cheers Kevin
Was silver used in the coin of the realm then? Six pennies etc. The silver coin, the Maria Thersa Thaler was the legal currency in a few overseas place s in the Middle East, so was theis shipment needed for that region. See: Maria Theresa thaler - Wikipedia
British Coins of World War II Steel Cents, Silver Nickels, and Invasion Notes: US Money in World War II | The National WWII Museum | New Orleans Silver bullion from sunken WWII ship makes it to the Mint at last Coins of the Third Reich, Nazi Germany With... "World War II In September 1939, Germany invaded Poland, leading to a declaration of war by Britain and France on Germany. The needs of the Nazi war effort required the use of metals that had previously been used to strike coins. The silver issues were therefore discontinued, as was the nickel Reichsmark, and bronze was no longer used in subsequent lower denomination issues. The only coins struck in Germany between 1941 and 1944-45 were the 2, 5 and 10 Reichspfennig, struck in zinc, complemented by a 50 Pfennig struck in aluminium. This conservation of metallic resources did not however, stop their final defeat in 1945, for which only the 1 and 10 Reichspfennig coins were struck."
The shipment of bullion, both silver and gold, is a whole subject. Several cargoes of both were lost, most have since been salvaged - every salvage being a story of it's own.
