Blog

A number of Britain's past coins stand as a tribute to the country’s incredible naval heritage. One such coin is the 1703 Vigo coin.

The story of Mary and William and their coinage began with a princess who didn’t think much of her suitor.

Maria Theresa, a name that’s now well known throughout the world of numismatics, was born in 1717. The only female ruler in the House of Habsburg, she became the Archduchess of Austria and the Queen of Hungary and Bohemia at the age of 23.

Look at one of today’s £2 coins and you’ll see a figure that has graced many coins throughout the UK’s history. This is Britannia, the female personification of Britain, a symbol of national identity.

 

The crown coin is an enduring piece of British coinage, with a long and winding history. Today, small numbers of crowns are struck to commemorate big moments in British culture. But almost 500 years ago, large volumes of crowns were issued into circulation for everyday use.

Distinguishing between proof coins and non proof coins is generally a very straightforward task. However, there are certain coins that are decidedly more tricky to identify.

Today, the coins in circulation in Britain are simply a token of value, but our coins used to contain their value in silver or gold. In fact, it was once possible to take a file to your coins and take shavings of these precious metals – and many people did just that.

As The Royal Mint's inaugural design for its new Music Legends collection, there is no band more fitting than Queen to lead the series and become the first band on an official UK coin.

The Royal Mint has introduced a new collection, Music Legends, celebrating the artists who have changed the face of British music. This new series immortalises in coinage the country’s greatest musicians, starting with rock band, Queen. Each artist will feature on the reverse of the coin with The Portrait of Her Majesty the Queen, Elizabeth II by Jody Clark on the coin’s obverse. In a slow release of the full collection, the series will pluck the very best from the music Hall of Fame in a series of limited edition designs celebrating each artist’s legacy.

Milk spots are white marks that appear on the surface of silver coins and not easily removed safely.