The 2023 Queen Elizabeth II Memorial Gold Sovereign Range

Posted on by Vanessa Brockwell

On Monday 19th September 2022, Queen Elizabeth II was laid to rest. Her state funeral was the first held in Britain since Winston Churchill’s in 1965. The State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II marked the culmination of 10 days of national mourning, during which time the Army, Navy and Royal Air Force readied themselves to perform a role rehearsed over many years. It was a final act of dedication to their late Commander in Chief.

A new series of gold sovereign coins have been produced to mark the first anniversary of the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, with designs that recall the military procession and State funeral with which Britain paid its last respects, to their greatest ever monarch. Introducing the 2023 Queen Elizabeth II Memorial Gold Sovereign Range, and in particular, the quarter sovereign…

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The Equestrian Portraits of Queen Elizabeth II

Posted on by Vanessa Brockwell

Queen Elizabeth II Equestrian

Monarchs are rarely portrayed in any style other than the traditional facial profile portrait. In fact, not since the reign of King Charles I had a British monarch been depicted in an equestrian portrait. Well-known for her horsemanship, the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II along with three of her royal jubilees have been celebrated with crown sized British commemorative coins that depict her on horseback, also known as an Equestrian Portrait.

In our latest blog, we walk you through some of the most important coin designs of Her Late Majesty’s reign, featuring an equestrian portrait…

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7 Facts about Queen Elizabeth II’s Coronation

Posted on by Vanessa Brockwell

This year marks the 70th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation, which took place at Westminster Abbey on the 2nd June 1953. When the young queen solemnly received the orb and sceptre and was crowned in Westminster Abbey seventy years ago, no one could have known she would go on to become Britain’s best loved and longest reigning monarch.

In this blog, we identify seven key facts of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II…

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A guide to the 1953 Coronation British coins

Posted on by Vanessa Brockwell

A guide to the 1953 Coronation British coins

Although Elizabeth II became Queen on 6th February 1952, following the sad passing of her father, King George VI, she was not formally invested until her coronation on the 2nd June 1953.

As a result, the Royal Mint had almost 18 months to prepare coinage for the new monarch, a process which involves utilising years of royal tradition. Here, we will be exploring the complete collection of 1953 Queen Elizabeth II coronation coins…

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The Changing Faces of Coin Portraiture

Posted on by Emma Wilde
coin portraiture

 

In an age filled with television, social media and all of the technology we could ask for, it’s hard to imagine a time where people couldn’t ‘virtually’ see each other, including their own Monarch or leader.

However, centuries ago most people would have only seen the face of their leader on a coin, with the obverse side depicting the image of a monarch or leader for thousands of years. We’ll be taking a look back at coin portraiture throughout the ages, and how dramatically this has changed.

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