This 2016 25 cent, double image lenticular, large format coin is called “Brakeman”. The large format (35 mm diameter) 25 cent coin features a portrait of a ghostly brakeman dressed in his 1928 uniform, holding a lantern.  Using lenticular technology, a haunting effect can be seen when the coin is tilted: the brakeman appears without a head, with two small, glowing orbs that create the illusion of peering eyes. Mintage is just 15,000 coins.

The Design:

Its reverse design features spectacular lenticular technology that masterfully tells the chilling tale of Vancouver's headless brakeman. In one image, the dark train tunnel is suddenly illuminated by the bright glow of a lantern as an otherworldly figure emerges before the viewer, dressed in a railway uniform from 1928. Chillingly, the brakeman appears without a head, with two small, glowing orbs that create the illusion of eyes peering out towards the viewer. When the coin is tilted to the other side, the light suddenly goes out, leaving the viewer alone in the darkness with this shadowy presence, as the ill-fated brakeman continues his eternal walk along the train tracks.

The word “Canada” is engraved along the outer ring, together with the denomination “25 Cents” and the Year “2015”

The Tale of the Headless Brakeman:

The Waterfront Station, in downtown Vancouver, is the site where this chilling tale of the headless brakeman is said to emanate from.  On the railway tracks north of the building, the ghost of a rail worker is sometimes seen on rainy nights. In 1928, a brakeman was killed while he was making repairs in the rail yard. He slipped on the wet tracks and was knocked unconscious. Horrifically, he was decapitated when a passenger train approached and ran him over. Since that time, some have reported seeing the headless brakeman roaming the tracks, his lantern glowing in his hand.