The Who 2021 One Ounce Gold Proof : Royal Mint Music Legends Series

Presenting the latest release in the Royal Mint’s incredible Music Legends series. The Who 2021 Music Legends One Ounce Gold Proof evokes the legendary British band with a unique design, struck in glorious 24 Carat Gold Proof.

The Music Legends Series

Launched in 2020, The Royal Mint’s Music Legends series celebrates the British artists that have dominated and transformed the world of popular music. 

When Queen headlined the initial Music Legends collection, it represented the first time that a band had been memorialised on UK coinage. The Royal Mint kept up a steady beat of releases through 2020, adding collections celebrating Elton John and David Bowie to the popular series.

Each coin issued so far – crafted by respected designers like Jody Clark and Chris Facey – has celebrated the unique style of the featured artists. Available in Gold Proof, Silver Proof and Brilliant Uncirculated editions, as well as a range of denominations, Music Legends coins are designed to appeal to music fans and much as coin collectors and investors.

Starring: The Who

The Who 2021 Music Legends One Ounce Gold Proof coin celebrates the work of influential English rock band, The Who.

Formed in London in the early 60s, The Who have sold more than 100 million records worldwide in a career that has spanned six decades. The band’s classic line-up featured Roger Daltry as lead vocalist, Keith Moon on drums, John Entwhistle on bass and Pete Townshend tackling lead guitar and song writing. The Who are known for singles like My Generation and Baba O’Riley, pioneering rock operas like Tommy and Quadrophenia, paired with an electric stage presence.

Straddling genres and styles with ease, The Who shaped punk, metal, power pop and progressive rock and are still playing live and releasing music. If The Royal Mint is celebrating the best of British music in their Music Legends series, then The Who are an indisputably good choice.

An Iconic Design

The reverse of all 2021 The Who Music Legends coins, including the One Ounce Gold Proof coin, features a Rickenbacker guitar with a Union Jack motif. The designer, Henry Gray, choose the Rickenbacker because that was the first guitar Pete Townsend destroyed onstage. 

Instead of a single cable jack, the guitar has a pair of pinball machine flippers: the ball speeding down the neck a clever nod to The Who’s single, Pinball Wizard.

Pinball Wizard featured on the band's fourth studio album, the rock opera Tommy. The song became a fan favourite, thanks to its pop sound and has been covered by a number of other artists, most famously Elton John.

In the coin’s design, the pinball appears to have burst through a speaker stack, revealing The Who’s iconic bullseye logo, designed in 1964 by Brian Pike. Though the logo never featured on any of the band’s albums, it has been proudly worn on t-shirts and badges by fans across the world.

Gray's reverse design is paired with an obverse featuring Jody Clark’s portrait of her Majesty the Queen, the fifth such head to appear on her official coinage. The inscription reads: ‘ELIZABETH II · D · G · REG · F · D · 100 POUNDS ·’.

One Ounce Gold Proof

Coins in The Who collection are available in Gold Proof, Silver Proof and Cupronickel Brilliant Uncirculated editions, like previous releases in The Royal Mint’s Music Legends series.

The Who 2021 Music Legends One Ounce Gold Proof is composed of 31.21 grams of 999.9 fineness gold. That’s the equivalent of 24 Carats, meaning these coins have a pure gold content of 31.10 grams or one troy ounce. These specifications match a One Ounce Britannia and the two coins share the same diameter: 32.69 millimetres.

Struck to Proof standard, your The Who 2021 Music Legends One Ounce Gold Proof represents the best quality presentation of this collector’s piece available. Sharp details and mirror finishes are achieved through careful selection of materials, multiple strikes and hand finishing, guaranteeing your coin an outstanding appearance.

Collectible Commemorative Coins

Like previous coins in this series, we anticipate that The Who 2021 Music Legends One Ounce Gold Proof will appeal to a broad range of buyers, thanks to its clever design and the significant amount of gold that these pieces contain. Those who have purchased previous coins in this highly-sought after series will no doubt want to add The Who 2021 Music Legends One Ounce Gold Proof to their collection.

As one of only 350 issued you will want to acquire The Who 2021 Music Legends One Ounce Gold Proof while stocks last. You’ll know you have the authentic product, thanks to the high-quality, original The Royal Mint packaging and a numbered certificate of authenticity.

The Who 2021 Music Legends One Ounce Gold Proof coin has a face value of £100. While you would not want to spend your The Who 2021 Music Legends One Ounce Gold Proof coin in a shop, it is legal tender in the UK. That means that your purchase is exempt from Capital Gains Tax. Additionally, the 24 Carat composition of The Who 2021 Music Legends One Ounce Gold Proof coin means that it is VAT free as investment gold in the UK.