Today's Independent supplement, the Saturday Magazine, has a brief feature on the new 50 pence coin design, which features the Royal Arms on the reverse, replacing the long standing image of Britannia (found on English coins since 1672). The article discusses whether there will be as much resentment of the change in the design as there was when the coin was first introduced in October 1969 to replace the 10 shilling note.
All British coins have been redesigned, and are being released gradually throughout the remainder of this year. A competition launched in 2005 to design a contemporary theme for the entire range of Royal Mint coins was won this April by 26 year old Matthew Dent from Bangor. His idea was to employ the Royal Arms in their entirety on the £1 coin, and to select details from the arms for all the other British coins of lesser value, namely 1p, 5p, 10p 20p and 50p.
To read the article visit Minor British Institutions: The 50p coin, and to see the new designs visit www.royalmint.com/newdesigns/designsRevealed.aspx. A history of the 50p coin can also be read online at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_fifty_pence_coin.
Chris
www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk
Scotland's Greatest Story
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