The Big Nickel is a nine-metre (30 ft) replica of a 1951 Canadian nickel

Nickel (Canadian coin)

The Canadian five-cent coin, commonly called a nickel, is a coin worth five cents or one-twentieth of a Canadian dollar. It was patterned on the corresponding coin in the neighbouring United States...

, located at the grounds of Dynamic Earth

Dynamic Earth

Dynamic Earth is an interactive science museum in Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. Owned and operated by Science North, Dynamic Earth is an earth sciences museum which builds on the city's mining heritage, focusing principally on geology and mining history exhibitions.The centre, which opened in...

 in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. The twelve-sided nickel is located on a small hill overlooking the intersection of Municipal Road 55

Greater Sudbury Road 55

Sudbury Municipal Road 55 is a municipal road in the city of Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. Extending from Whitefish to Coniston under a variety of street names, the road's entire length is a former alignment of Highway 17 and the Trans-Canada Highway....

 and Big Nickel Drive at the westernmost end of the Gatchell neighbourhood.

The Big Nickel celebrated its 45th anniversary on July 22, 2009 with a "birthday party" on the grounds of Dynamic Earth, including a display of coins from Science North

Science North

Science North is an interactive science museum in Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.The complex, which is Northern Ontario's most popular tourist attraction, consists of two snowflake-shaped buildings on the southwestern shore of Lake Ramsey, just south of the city's downtown core, as well as a...

's Inco Coin Collection.
The idea for the Big Nickel began in 1963 when Ted Szilva, at the time a 28-year-old City of Sudbury fireman, read about a contest in the Sudbury Star

Sudbury Star

The Sudbury Star is a Canadian daily regional newspaper, published in Sudbury, Ontario. It is run by the media conglomerate Sun Media, which is controlled by Quebecor....

.