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Know Your Mace: Yukon
Floyd McCormick

In 1964, 55 years after its creation as a wholly-elected body, the Yukon Territorial Council (now the Legislative Assembly) established a competition for the design of a Yukon Mace. In 1966, a design submitted by RCMP Corporal James Ballantyne was chosen. However, funding the Mace’s creation took some time.

In 1971, the Government of Canada agreed to finance the project. Henry Birks & Sons of Montreal created the Mace at a cost of $8,300. On March 6, 1972, at a ceremony in Whitehorse, Governor General Roland Michener presented the Mace to Ronald Rivett, Speaker of the Territorial Council, as a gift from the people of Canada.

Yukon’s Mace is made of gold-plated sterling silver. A crown tops the head of the Mace. Beneath the crown is a topographical cross section of Yukon. The coats of arms of Canada and Yukon are on the head of the Mace. The five-kilogram Mace also features fireweed, Yukon’s floral emblem; the figures of a miner, a trapper and a First Nations person; as well as etchings of Yukon scenery and other armorial bearings.

In 2014, the Mace was refurbished. As part of this process, the coats of arms were plated in white gold, providing a two-tone effect.

Floyd McCormick
Clerk of the Yukon
Legislative Assembly