Posts Tagged ‘Coins’
Britain’s favourite £1 coin – Vote now
As part of the Great One Pound Coin Race, we want to find out Britain’s favourite £1 coin.
Over the next few weeks we’ll be asking you to vote for your favourite £1 designs from each design category – UK, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England.
Let us know your favourite UK £1 coin design by voting in our poll below:
More information about the UK £1 coin designs
The UK Royal Arms £1 was issued in 1983, 1993, 2003, and 2008
The £1 Coin was first issued in 1983 as a replacement for the less robust £1 note – a note lasted for just 9 months on average, while a £1 coin can survive in excess of 40 years. The first £1 coin design features the Royal Coat of Arms designed by Eric Sewell, chief engraver at the Royal Mint.
The UK Crowned Shield £1 was issued in 1988
In 1988 a Crowned Royal Shield of Arms design was introduced. This design features the Royal Arms of Her Majesty The Queen, surmounted by the Crown of St Edward. All coins dated 1988 feature this design as this was the only year it was issued.
The UK Royal Arms Shield was issued in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015.
In 2008 a new reverse design for the £1 was issued featuring the Royal Shield of Arms – designed by Timothy Noad. The edge inscription in Latin reads DECUS ET TUTAMEN which translates as; An Ornament and a Safeguard. This dates back to the first machine struck coins minted in 1662 and refers to the inscription itself which was intended to prevent people scraping valuable metal off the edge of the coin – a process known as ‘clipping’.
The UK Royal Coat of Arms was issued in 2015
In 2015 The Royal Mint revealed a new £1 Coin design. Timothy Noad’s contemporary adaptation of the traditional Royal Arms design is one of the last commemorative designs to feature on the round pound coin, with the newly shaped coin due to enter circulation in 2017.
The UK Last Round Pound was issued in 2016
This 2016 £1 coin is the final ‘round pound’ issued by the Royal Mint, calling time on a coin which was first issued more than thirty years ago. The reverse design features the animals that represent each of the four constituent UK countries and was designed by Gregory Cameron. This coin will not enter general circulation and is only available to buy in a Brilliant Uncirculated quality.
Next week- Part 2: What’s your favourite Scottish £1 coin design?
This could be your last chance to secure Britain’s last ’round pound’.
If you want to get your hands on the last ‘round pound’ they are available here protectively encapsulated and certified as superior Brilliant Uncirculated quality.
The Great One Pound Coin Race Starts Today – just 250 days to own a complete £1 Coin Collection
You have just 250 days to collect all 24 Round £1 Coin Designs.
They’ve been a part of our lives for 33 years but the Round Pound Coin will be withdrawn from circulation forever on the 15th October this year.
Starting from today, we’re encouraging collectors across the UK, to join the biggest race of its kind ever held – The Great One Pound Coin Race.
It’s totally FREE to enter the Race and by entering you’ll be able to:
- Collect all 24 circulating £1 coins direct from your change
- Receive collecting tips and suggestions to help you complete your One Pound Collection
- Track your progress with the Change Checker web app or on your FREE downloadable £1 Coin Race Sheet
- Swap coins online with other collectors to help complete your collection
- Win exclusive Gold-plated One Pound Coin Race Participant’s Medals
- Receive exclusive participant’s discounts and savings
33 Years of Round £1 Coins. 24 Designs. Gone in 250 days.
The first £1 coin was issued in 1983
The first £1 coin entered circulation right back in 1983 and featured the Royal Coat of Arms as its design. It was quickly followed the next year with a Scottish thistle design, followed by the Welsh leek, Northern Irish flax and the English oak in subsequent years.
In total 24 different designs have entered circulation with five different series representing the component countries of the UK. The remaining four designs have all been variations on the theme of the Royal Coats Arms. A final, twenty-fifth Round Pound Coin was issued by The Royal Mint in 2016 but it never entered general circulation.
Scarce £1 Coins still available for face value in your change
Of course some £1 coins are much rarer than others. It’s partly because mintages of the different designs vary vastly, from less than 1 million coins to over 300 million. But that’s only part of the story. Older issues are also often more difficult to find, especially in good condition.
The 3 lowest mintage £1 coins come from a series of UK Capital Cities issued in 2010/11
The three lowest mintage £1 coins in circulation come from a series of UK Capital City coins issued in 2010/11, with Edinburgh being the rarest with a mintage of 935,000 coins – just 0.04% of all the £1 coins ever struck.
But it’s still possible to find even these rare coins in your change along with all of the other 21 circulation £1 coins. But only for the next 250 days.
Once the 15 October has passed, you will have little chance of building a complete collection of £1 Coins at anything like their face value. So …
on your marks…
Get set…
Go…
The Great One Pound Coin Race is on. Start your race today, before it’s too late.
First look: New Royal Mint UK coin designs for 2017
Every year The Royal Mint mark the year’s memorable events and anniversaries that capture the nation’s striking stories on circulating coins, and 2017 is no different.
Today The Royal Mint have unveiled the new themes and designs for all the 2017 commemorative coins, and Change Checkers can look forward to some very significant British anniversaries being commemorated.
£5 – King Canute
2017 marks the 1000th anniversary of the coronation of King Canute and this £5 coin designed by Lee R. Jones has been issued.
This brand new £5 coin depicts King Canute, the Viking conqueror hailed the first ‘king of all England’.
£5 – House of Windsor Centenary
To mark the 100th anniversary of the creation of the House of Windsor this £5 coin has been designed by John Bergdahl.
A centenary of royal service is commemorated on this £5 coin marking the 100th anniversary of the creation of the House of Windsor – when King George V changed the name of the British Royal Family from the German Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to the English Windsor.
£2 – Jane Austen
Designed by Dominique Evans, a portrait of Jane Austen features on this brand new £2 coin to mark 200 years since her death.
To mark the 200th anniversary of the death of Jane Austen, one of the best-loved English novelists, this £2 coin featuring her portrait has been issued.
£2 – WW1 Aviation
This £2 coin has been designed by the agency ‘tangerine’ and pays tribute to the aviators of the First World War.
In commemoration of the Centenary of the First World War, The Royal Mint has issued a series of specially commissioned £2 coins. This coin pays tribute to the aviators of the First World War and their sacrifices in the race for supremacy of the skies.
50p – Sir Isaac Newton
This 50p coin has been issued to commemorate the achievements of Sir Isaac Newton and has been designed by Aaron West.
This 50p coin remembers the legacy of Sir Isaac Newton, genius of the Scientific Revolution and one of the most famous men in history.
The announcement of next year’s coins is always an exciting moment for Change Checkers, particularly when the anniversaries are as significant as these.
And now we can now start looking forward to finding these new designs in our change throughout the year!
The 2017 Change Checker Commemorative Coin Set
If you can’t wait to find these coins in your change you can add the 2017 Change Checker Commemorative Coin Set to your collection today>>