Canada made its entry in the competitive bullion gold coin market in 1979 with the Maple Leaf, the first pure gold bullion coin - a concept which quickly garnered a significant share of market interest. In early advertisements, Maple Leaf coins were pictured flowing from a gold bullion bar - an artifice which effectively made the point that bullion gold coins' pricing was related to the spot price. At the time of its unveiling, the Maple Leaf's only competitor was the South African Krugerrand - a coin alloyed with copper to 22 karat. It is produced in one-ounce, one-half ounce, quarter-ounce and one-tenth ounce sizes.

Early Maple Leaf bullion coins were minted at .999 purity, but in 1982 the Royal Canadian Mint went to the .9999 pure gold coin - the standard to which it produces coins today. Each coin bears the .9999 purity stamp along with the date, the weight and the face value. The Canadian Maple Leaf is a legal tender gold coin - a status that allows it to be used as currency and in debt settlements. The earlier issues with the .999 stamp trade at a discount to the later mintages.

The obverse is depicted Queen Elizabeth II profile, the nominal value of the coin ($ 10) and the year of issue. 

On the reverse is Canadian national symbol - the maple leaf. It also indicates the weight of the pure gold (1/4 Oz) and fineness of gold (999.9).