The Royal Mint unveils The Portrait of Britain coin collection

The Royal Mint has released details of its new coin collection, which profiles four of London's best-loved landmarks on Proof coins which have the distinction of being official United Kingdom coins.

The Royal Mint engravers Laura Clancy and Glyn Davies have captured the spirit of four instantly-recognisable British landmarks:

• Elizabeth Tower, housing Big Ben
• Buckingham Palace
• Tower Bridge
• Trafalgar Square

In their designs, each British icon is viewed as though through the eyes of a visitor, seen through passing crowds or rain showers, giving the coins the feel of an impressionist painting.

Glyn Davies, The Royal Mint engraver said: 'We visited the landmarks in London, and it struck us that it’s never possible to get an uninterrupted view of them without being obscured in some way by the weather, other tourists or even their location.

'On returning we drew up compositions and added a wash of watercolour.'

The Royal Mint engraver Laura Clancy continued: 'Our coins are not a literal representation but express the transient effects of light and colour on a location. Throughout the process, we have been aiming for an impression of the subject, a moment in time - the modelling to convey the place, the colour and treatment of the metal to convey time and mood.'


The four-coin set is presented in a Royal Mint presentation case, complemented by a booklet that tells the story behind each subject. A certificate of authenticity completes the set to confirm it is one of only 3,500 available. All four coins bear the obverse portrait of Her Majesty The Queen by Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS - fitting for a set that also features Buckingham Palace, her official London residence





PORTRAIT OF BRITAIN COLLECTION DETAILS

Denomination:: £5
Weight: 28.28g
Diameter: 38.61mm
Quality: Proof
Edge type: Milled

For more on the work of The Royal Mint, visit their website.

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