CURRENT BID
0.00CAD+ applicable fees & taxes.
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Live Online Auction Starts In
2026 Oct 22 @ 17:30 (UTC-04:00 : AST/EDT)
Buyer’s Premium of 15% will be added on the hammer price all items as per the Terms & Conditions of the sale.
A SPECIAL NOTE TO OUR U.S. CUSTOMERS:
We regret that lots will not be shipped into the United States. Please submit bids only if you are able to provide a secure delivery address within Canada. We apologize for the inconvenience and disappointment this may cause.
A unique lot of three Olympic presentation medals and one letter from well-known, long-time Ottawa Citizen Sports Journalist Martin Cleary. Martin Cleary graduated from Ryerson Polytechnical Institute (now Toronto Metropolitan University) with a diploma in journalism in 1973 and worked as a sportswriter at The Citizen for almost 40 years. He continued with The Citizen and the Sun as a freelance sportswriter for seven years before joining Ottawa Sports Pages in 2020. During his career, he attended six Olympic Games and five world figure skating championships and covered hundreds of local, provincial, national and international championships in about 50 sports. Martin also served as a director for the Ottawa Sports Awards Dinner and chaired the nomination committee for the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame. These medals are believed to have been presented to Mr. Cleary at various Olympic Games he covered over his storied 40-year career, and are believed not to have been given out to the general public for the games. The metals and specifications are as follows: 1) Los Angeles 1984 XXIII Olympiad Medal. Obverse: LA Olympic arches in the center, with olive branches around the bottom rim of the medal. Along the top, the inscription reads ‘CITIUS ALTIUS FORTIUS’ (‘Faster, Higher, Stronger’), the Olympic motto. Reverse: The year 1984 sits above the center, with the LA Olympiad symbol in the center and the Olympic rings below. Around the rim read ‘ LOS ANGELES’ and ‘XXIII OLYMPIAD’ along the top and bottom of the rim, respectively. Specifications: Diameter: 60mm, Weight: 96.6gr., Composition: Base Metal, Rim: Plain. Housed in its original blue cardboard box and blue case. Case lid is detached from the base. 2) Calgary 1988 XV Olympic Winter Games Medal. Obverse: Centre displays the Calgary ’88 Olympic logo, with the Olympic rings below. Around the rim reads “XV OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES” (and repeated in French), with ‘CALGARY 1988’ along the bottom. Reverse: Calgary city skyline and Olympic stadium in the foreground with the mountains in the background. Olympic torch is seen on the left side of the field beside the landscape, and the Olympic motto ‘CITIUS ALTIUS FORTIUS’ (‘Faster, Higher, Stronger’) along the bottom rim. Specifications: Diameter: 64mm, Weight: 130.1 g. Composition: Base Metal, Rim: Plain. Housed in original velvet brown box of issue and its cardboard sleeve. 3) Seoul 1988 XXIV Olympiad Medal. Obverse: Olympic stadium below, with the President of the IOC name and signature at left and the President of the Seoul Olympic Committee name and signature at right, with Seoul and Olympic Rings logo at upper center and dates ‘1988.9.17-10.2’ at bottom. Reverse: Man on horseback shooting arrows, Olympic Rings below horse image and ‘XXIVTH OLYMPIAD’ and ‘SEOUL 1988’ on two lines at bottom. Specifications: Diameter: 65mm, Weight: 164.5gr. Composition: Base Metal, Rim: Plain. Housed in the original blue velvet case and the original white cardboard box. Letter: A 1963 letter from the Campbell Soup Company Ltd. regarding the company's “Here’s Your Silver Dollar” promotion addressed to a member of Martin Cleary’s family. Primarily in 1962, Campbell’s Soup Co. ran a promotion where individuals could send in several soup labels, and the company would send the customer a genuine 1962 silver dollar. However, because the promotion was so popular, the company could not acquire more silver dollars, so many individuals received a dollar bill instead. This was the case for Ms. Cleary. Included in the lot is a letter from Campbell’s Soup and an attached article from the company stating that the mintage of silver dollars for 1962 was no longer available, and the original dollar is also included. The lot as a whole is a unique and interesting accumulation related to a well-known Ottawa-area journalist. This lot spans Olympic, athletic, and journalistic themes, and includes a neat, different promotional item that ran across Canada in the early 1960s and is tied to the same family. It would make a great addition to any coin, metal, or Olympic-themed collection.
Auction Location:
88 Mill Street Box 1494, Almonte, Ontario, K0A 1A0, Canada
Previewing Details:
Items will be avaiable for preview at the Toronto Reference Library on Thursday October 22nd, from 10am to 4:30 pm.
Ottawa residents may also preview the majority of items at the October 11th Ottawa Coin Show, held at the Westboro Legion from 9:00 until 3:00.
HST of 13% will be applied to any purchaser from ON; GST of 5% will be applied to any purchaser from Quebec; HST of 15% will be applied to any purchaser from NS, NB, NL or PEI. All other provinces in Canada 5% will be applied. No tax is charged on out of Country purchases. .999 Fine Silver & Gold items are HST-exempt within Canada.
Taxes:
| Tax | Rate | Desc. |
| GST |
5% |
BC |
| GST |
5% |
Alberta |
| GST |
5% |
Manitoba |
| HST |
5% |
HST Quebec |
| HST |
15% |
NB |
| HST |
15% |
NFLD |
| GST |
5% |
NWT |
| HST |
15% |
NS |
| GST |
5% |
Nunavut |
| HST |
13% |
Ontario |
| HST |
15% |
PEI |
| GST |
5% |
SASK |
| GST |
5% |
Yukon |
Buyer's Premiums:
| From (Incl.) | To (Excl.) | Premium |
| 0.00 |
Infinite |
15% |
Additional Fees:
Shipping Details:
Lot pick-up: In-person pickup at Coin Expo will be available on the Friday and Saturday, or at Alliance Coin & Banknote in Almonte beginning on October 29th (please call ahead to ensure are ready for you). All lots not picked up will be shipped at the bidders expense. We charge actual shipping costs on all orders. All lots will be shipped with tracking. On very small purchases, we will consider shipping by regular post, however in these situations full liability for loss rests with the buyer.
PLEASE NOTE: we are unable to ship lots from this sale into the United States
Payment Details:
No Info Available
Accepted Payment Methods:
- VISA
- Master Card
- AMEX
- Discover
- Money Order/Bank Draft
- Check/Cheque
- COD (cash on delivery)
- PayPal
- See Payment Details
- Wire Transfer
- Multiple Credit Cards
- E-Transfer
Terms and Conditions at Alliance Coin Auctions
Credit and Deposits: All bidders must be approved. Those who do not have an established relationship with Alliance Coin & Banknote must provide an approved reference or a credit guarantee prior to the sale.
Buyer’s Premiums: A buyer’s premium of 15% for all floor/mail/email/online/phone bidders will be added to the hammer price. Appropriate GST or HST will be added for lots delivered in Canada. No taxes will be added if shipped out of the country. All accounts not paid within 30 days will result in an interest charge of 2% per month calculated from November 1st, 2026.
Auction Conduct: All our starting bids will be opened at approximately 10% above the second highest mail or computer bid. If there are no mail bids, auctioneer will start the bids at the reserve price, or half of the low estimate, or where possible, call for an opening bid. Advances are at the discretion of the auctioneer. In the event there are identical bids, earliest bid and floor bids will take priority. We reserve the right to withdraw any lot prior to the sale. Lots are sold to the highest bidder at an average rate of 120 lots per hour.
Bidding Procedures: Bids may be made in advance of the auction, by phone, mail, in person, fax 613-256-7319, or email info@alliancecoin.com. Live telephone bids can be facilitated with arrangements made in advance. ALL Mail, fax and email bids must arrive to our office no later than Wednesday October 21st at 12 noon EDT. The auction will be conducted on iCollector.com and all mail bids will be entered online. Alliance Coin Auctions reserves the right to refuse bids deemed not in good faith. We are not responsible for bidder errors so please check your bids carefully. Bidding increments are at the discretion of the auctioneer, the scale below must be followed, any uneven bids may not be accepted:
0 – 100 5
100 - 250 10
250 – 1,000 25
1,000 – 5,000 100
5,000 – 10,000 250
Grading Standards and Description: The Cataloguers have taken every reasonable measure to ensure that all the lots are as described by Alliance Coin & Banknote. Many of the lots are third party graded by PCGS, BCS, PMG, ICCS, NGC, CCCS - We feel these are the most recognized grading companies in the industry.
Return Policies: Returns will be accepted by absentee bidders for lots that have been misattributed or incorrectly catalogued. We guarantee that all items are genuine and we will refund anything that has been misrepresented by the cataloguers. Certified grading concerns are to be dealt with through the certified grading company, not Alliance Coin Auctions. No returns will be accepted on graded material. All floor sales are final, including those who choose to use our agent. Absolutely no returns will be accepted after 45 days as consignors are then paid in full.
Lot pick-up/Shipping Details: Lot pickup is available at the Coin Expo Friday and Saturday October 23rd and 24th, and also at our Almonte location beginning on October 29th (please call ahead to ensure we are ready for you). Potential pickup also available in Ottawa with prior arrangements. All lots not picked up will be shipped at the bidders expense. We charge actual shipping costs on all orders, which will be sent with tracking by Express Post, Tracked Packet, Registered Post, or Federal Express. Small-value invoices may be sent by regular post on request, however full liability will rest with the buyer in case of loss or theft in transit.
Payment Details: Cheques must clear before shipping; money orders and certified cheques will be verified and shipped within 48 hours of receipt. Cash payments at the show are accepted. Email payments also accepted. Credit Card and Paypal payments are accepted at a 3.0% premium to cover fees.
PLEASE ensure your "preferred method of payment" as specified in your icollector profile is correct, as we will assume that information to be correct unless notified otherwise.
Catalogue Values: All values are listed in Canadian Funds.
Abbreviations: Within the catalogue you will find many abbreviations, the list below describes each of them:
a about (aEF – about Extra Fine)
Al Aluminum
Approx. Approximate
AGW Actual Gold Weight
AR Silver
AE Brass, Bronze, or Copper
AU Gold
ASW Actual Silver Weight
AV Gold
Bo Bowman
BR Breton
Cat Catalogue
CH Charlton
Co Courteau
COA Certificate of Authenticity
Cu Copper
C/S Counter Stamp
EF Extremely Fine
F Fine
FDC Fleur de Coin
G Good
grm grams
l left
Ler LeRoux
mm Millimeters
r right
S/N Serial Number
Std Seated
Unc Uncirculated
VF Very Fine
VG Very Good
WM White Metal