The Royal Canadian Mint have launched a new series which highlights the ghost tales that delight and frighten people of all ages – in this case and for the first coin in the series, the tale of the “Ghost Bride” is featured.

The tale begins in the 1930's and involves a young bride who along with her new spouse was a guest at the Palatial Fairmont Banff Springs in Alberta. The wedding day itself held nothing but promise for the young lovebirds. The groom stood in the library, waiting for his bride to arrive, before they made their way together to the glamorous Cascade Ballroom for the evening's celebrations. As the newlyweds stepped onto the winding limestone staircase, the numerous lit candles that lined the steps cast a soft amber glow on the bride, who was resplendent in her white lace gown and veil. The tale, as it is remembered – tells the story of the new bride stepping onto the ascending staircase, suddenly stumbled and tragically fell to her death.

Since then, the Ghost Bride as she has been named, has made the Fairmont Banff Springs her eternal home. To this day, some claim to have seen an apparition dancing in the hotel's ballroom or walking down the staircase, as she did on that fateful day which brought a tragic end to her love story – till death do us part .

The coin was launched in the very place where this tale originates – the Fairmont Banff Springs. Often referred to as “Canada's Castle in the Rockies” the Fairmont is a landmark hotel which was opened in 1888 and was the inspiration of Sir William Cornelius Van Horne, 19th century railway pioneer and hotel visionary. Its construction marked the birth of tourism in the Canadian Rockies. Styled after a Scottish Baronial Castle, The Fairmont Banff Springs is a National Historical Site of Canada and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The coin, which incorporates lenticular technology, offers further enhancement of the portrait of the bride with her eyes closed, her bridal headdress softly cascading over her shoulders – tilt the coin slightly and…her eyes suddenly spring open, while the candles that lined the staircase light up the once-black background.Below the Ghost Bride is the familiar image of the majestic Fairmont Banff Springs.The obverse includes the current portrait HM Queen Elizabeth II which is used on all Canadian coins since 2003, the portrait is the work of Susanna Blunt.