Basic list of silver foreign coins

At estate sales and auctions there is often jars or bags filled with foreign coins and there usually isn't much time to throughly search them, weigh them and research them, although having a smartphone with internet access is very valuable at auctions.

Here are a basic list of common (circulation) silver foreign coins you encounter frequently at estate sales:

Canadian dollars, half dollars, dimes and quarters dated 1920-1966 are 80% silver. Those same Canadian coins dated 1967 are either 50% silver or 80% silver. Canadian dollars, half dollars, dimes and quarters dated 1968 are either 50% silver or 99% nickel. If you can, take a magnet to any 1968 Canadian coins you encounter, if it sticks, it is not silver, if it is non-magnetic, it is 50% silver.

British silver coins can be distinguished from other countries in the British Empire because they do not have any country name on them. The silver coins up until 1920 are sterling (92.5% silver) coins dated 1920-1946 are 50% silver. No circulation British coin dated 1947 and later contains any silver.

Australian silver coins are sterling (92.5% silver) up until 1947 when they switched to 50% silver. Pre-decimal (shilling, florin, sixpence, threepence, crown, etc.) Australian coins are 50% silver from 1947-1963/4. The only decimal coin intended for circulation that contains silver was the 1966 dated half-dollar that is 80% silver.

Mexican coins are a complex subject because there was no set date that silver was removed from circulating currency so this post will only deal with the most common types. The Peso was .903 silver until 1918 when it was reduced to .800 silver, in 1920 it was reduced to .720 silver, in 1947 it was reduced to .500 silver, in 1950 it was reduced to .300 silver, in 1957 it was reduced to .100 silver, only 10% pure silver! In 1970 the coin had all silver removed. Mexican 10 peso coins struck from 1992-1995 have a sterling silver center, these coins are easily identifiable because they have N$10 for the denomination, ten peso coins struck after 1995 that contain no silver will show $10. There are many more Mexican coins that contain silver, http://www.cointypes.info/mexico/ is a great resource to see what coins are silver and which ones aren't when it comes to Mexican coins.