Britain's Royal Mint produces largest gold coin
Published: 10:04 PM,Apr 30,2021 | EDITED : 08:04 PM,Apr 30,2021
A 10-kilogram commemorative gold coin marking the conclusion of the Queen's Beasts collection is pictured at The Royal Mint, South Wales. - Reuters
LONDON: Britain's Royal Mint has produced a 10-kilogram gold coin - the largest in its 1,100-year history - to mark the end of a special collection in honour of Queen Elizabeth II's coronational most 70 years ago.
The 'Beasts' commemorative coin collection involved the making of several coins containing images of 10 stone statues that lined the queen's route to Westminster Abbey to be crowned in 1953.
It began in 2017 with the Lion of England.
The latest coin took 400 hours to make and features all of the royal guardians - lions, a griffin, a falcon, a bull, a yale, a grey hound, a dragon, a unicorn and a horse - which surround an image of the queen.
Modern and hand-tooled techniques were used to create the coin, which has a denomination of £10,000 ($13,900).
The Royal Mint said the one-off giant coin has already been purchased by an undisclosed buyer.
The selling price was not given; However, the mint said due to the work that has gone into creating the coin, it would have sold in the region of six figures.
Versions of it are available in a range of finishes, with prices starting at £13 for a £5 denomination uncirculated coin.
Clare Maclennan, divisional director of commemorative coin at the Royal Mint, said: 'This coin sets a new standard for minting -combining centuries-old techniques with innovative technology to create a unique and beautiful work of art.
'It is the largest coin ever created by The Royal Mint, and is testament to the expertise, craftsmanship and skill of our team.' - dpa
The 'Beasts' commemorative coin collection involved the making of several coins containing images of 10 stone statues that lined the queen's route to Westminster Abbey to be crowned in 1953.
It began in 2017 with the Lion of England.
The latest coin took 400 hours to make and features all of the royal guardians - lions, a griffin, a falcon, a bull, a yale, a grey hound, a dragon, a unicorn and a horse - which surround an image of the queen.
Modern and hand-tooled techniques were used to create the coin, which has a denomination of £10,000 ($13,900).
The Royal Mint said the one-off giant coin has already been purchased by an undisclosed buyer.
The selling price was not given; However, the mint said due to the work that has gone into creating the coin, it would have sold in the region of six figures.
Versions of it are available in a range of finishes, with prices starting at £13 for a £5 denomination uncirculated coin.
Clare Maclennan, divisional director of commemorative coin at the Royal Mint, said: 'This coin sets a new standard for minting -combining centuries-old techniques with innovative technology to create a unique and beautiful work of art.
'It is the largest coin ever created by The Royal Mint, and is testament to the expertise, craftsmanship and skill of our team.' - dpa