The British Royal Mint has announced the sale of individual proof £1 gold, silver and Piedfort silver coins featuring Welsh graphic designer Matthew Dent’s rendition of the heraldic shield of the Royal Arms — only the third coin reverse version since 1983.
The coins have an extremely low mintage with the 22 carat gold piece limited to just 1,000 and each .925 sterling silver coin set to only 5,000.
Collectors may purchase the gold, silver and Piedfort silver proof coins for £425, £49.95 and £29.95, respectively. (See International Currency Converter.)
The Piedfort £1 is unique in that it’s twice the weight and double the thickness of its circulating counterpart. While it has the same 22.5 mm diameter as the non Piedfort silver proof, its weight is doubled at 19 grams.
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The number of counterfeit £1 coins in circulation has doubled in the last five years, according to new figures released by the Royal Mint and reported by the BBC. Two percent or 1 in 50 pound coins are fake, and based on production, that would account for some 30 million counterfeit £1s circulating.
In its last Annual Report, the Royal Mint indicates it conducts two yearly surveys and collects a "representative sample base." They noted an upward trend in fake coins, which they "shared with the Police who have had some notable successes in closing down illegal operations during the year."
With the actual figures now made public through the BBC, concern has risen according to news reports. As one cited example, Robert Matthews, former Queen’s Assay Master, said:
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The British Royal Mint has announced the latest series of commemorative coins celebrating Prince Charles’ 60th birthday. The design is rather unusual in that both sides of the coin bear a prominent head portrait — Prince Charles and his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, making it a “two-headed” coin.
In early 2008, the Royal Mint released a nickel version for £9.95 as well as a silver version within sets. Today, single coins in proof silver and proof gold are available for the price of £39.95 and £875.00, respectively. (See International Currency Converter.)
According to the Mint, the cupro-nickel coins have a limited mintage of 500,000, while the silver coins are limited to 20,000, and the gold coins to an extremely low issue of 1,500.
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The Royal Mint has developed a distinct collection of 18 silver proof coins celebrating the history of British motorcars. The Classic British Motorcars Silver Proof Collection includes coins featuring British cars manufactured during the first seven decades of the twentieth century.
The limited edition silver coins bear designs of world favorite cars from 1906 to the 1970s, like the Aston Martin, Rolls-Royce, Jaguar and the iconic Mini. Several Royal Mint promoted features of the collection include:
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The Royal Mint revealed on Wednesday limited edition silver, gold and base metal £2 coins to commemorate the successful bid of London 2012 and mark the Olympic handover from Beijing.
The coins are the first legal tender UK coinage to display the London 2012 logo and the first to show the Olympic emblem.
Sebastian Coe, chairman of the London 2012 organising committee, said:
"The sale of mementoes of this kind are a tradition of the Olympic and Paralympic movement and one that London 2012 and the Royal Mint will continue with the release of over the four years leading up to the 2012 Games."
The coins’ reverse features one hand passing the Olympic Flag to another, as well as the London 2012 Olympics logo within an inner ring. Surrounding the central design are the words ‘LONDON 2012′ and ‘BEIJING 2008,’ set against a backdrop of lines reminiscent of an athletics track.
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The British Royal Mint launched brilliant uncirculated 2008 United Kingdom £5 Gold Coins this week and announced that they would have an extremely low mintage of 750. The annual issued coins are struck in 22 carat gold with each measuring an impressive 36.02 millimetres in diameter.
It’s the largest coin of the gold sovereign family and weighs 39.94 grammes and contains 1.1771 ounces of gold, which is five times the amount within a single sovereign.
The obverse of heads side of the coins bears Her Majesty The Queen by Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS. The reverse or tails side depicts Benedetto Pistrucci’s dramatic portrayal of St George and the dragon.
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A new elegant Britannia design adorns freshly minted 2008 United Kingdom silver and gold collector coins launched by The Royal Mint. The bullion proof coins bear a standing portrait of Britannia, incorporating the motifs of the lighthouse, the trident, the shield and the helmet, as waves crash in the background.
"She [Britannia] almost appears to form part of the sea that surrounds and protects the British Isles."
The new design rendered by John Bergdahl is the latest depiction of Britannia, and the seventh in the series since it was introduced in 1987. It’s featured on the reverse or tails side of the silver proof £2, £1, 50p and 20p coins as well as the gold proof £100, £50, £25 and £10 coins.
The obverse or heads side of each bullion coin bears the portrait of Her Majesty The Queen by Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS.
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The Royal Mint has announced another year of financial success and improved profitability – a further year of improved performance.
An operating profit before exceptional items of £9. 6 million (2006-07: £8. 7m) has been delivered on sales of £131. 8 million, and profit after exceptional items and interest was £7. 2 million, compared with £1. 2 million for the previous year. This improved financial performance, which exceeds the Ministerial Target, means the Royal Mint will pay a dividend of £3. 9 million into the public purse.
These results reflect the Royal Mint’s position as the leading exporting mint in the world, with approximately 15% of the available global market, consolidating its status as a major supplier of steel-plated coinage products.
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The British Royal Mint has announced the sale of the extremely limited 2008 UK Queen Elizabeth I £5 Piedfort Platinum Proof Coin, and only days after releasing the four-coin silver proof Piedforts.
The platinum coin, like its sister silver version, has the piedfort-style double weight and thickness. It’s on sale for a whopping £5250 (~$10,264 USD). Too high? Set aside the coin’s beauty and consider only its limited 150 issuance and 3 ounce platinum content. You might just reconsider.
And you may want to hurry. The Royal Mint’s two previous years’ platinum Piedforts sold out.
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The Royal Mint launched their very limited 2008 UK Silver Proof Piedfort Four-Coin Collection for £249.95 (~$490 USD). Piedfort coins are unique with their contrasting double weight and thickness. The name ‘Piedfort’ (Pee-ay-fore) actually comes from the French word meaning "heavy measure."
The four coin silver proof collection includes the £1 coin bearing a fresh rendition of the Royal Arms, and this year’s three commemorative coins:
- £5 pieces honouring the 450th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth I
- £5 pieces honouring the 60th birthday of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, and
- the bi-colour £2 coin marking the centenary of the Olympic Games held in London in 1908
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