Latest news and updates on British numismatic - Coins, banknotes, tokens
August 29, 2025
Half Guinea 1669 to 1701 - Price Guide and Values
The half guinea gold coins were first produced in 1669, some years after the Guinea entered circulation. The Elephant and Castle symbol appears in some of them, from the emblem of the Royal African Company in Africa. It was founded, as The Company of Royal Adventurers Trading to Africa after Charles II ascended to the throne in 1660.
August 27, 2025
From the archives: Seventeenth-century tokens and heraldry
State arms appear on fewer than 2% of those armorial tokens, mostly the King's Arms as a sign, although the French Arms occur in Chelmsford and in Dover. A few bear the Commonwealth Arms, with the conjoined shields of England and Ireland. Amongst the tokens of Ireland is placed a CORKE FARTHING which bears not the arms of Cork but the arms of England on one side and on the other a harp, which looks like some sort of official issue of the Commonwealth.
August 23, 2025
Double Sovereign - 1980 to 2025 - Not intended for circulation
No Sovereigns were struck in the first few years of the decimal era and in 1974, Machin's coinage portrait graced the chief coin of the world for the first time. Interestingly, a 1974 Sovereign was the very last coin to be struck at the premises in Tower Hill, London, before production moved to the 35-acre site in Llantrisant, South Wales.
August 21, 2025
350 Years of the Royal Observatory Greenwich
The Royal Mint released several coins to commemorate the 350 years of the Royal Observatory Greenwich in partnership with the National Maritime Museum. The reverse design, by Henry Gray, depicts several scientific elements that have contributed to some of the historic discoveries made by the Royal Observatory.
August 20, 2025
10 Pence 1968 to 2025 - Price Guide and values
The reverse of the coin, before the Royal Arms, was designed by Christopher Ironside and was a crowned lion (formally, Part of the crest of England, a lion passant guardant royally crowned). A lion passant is walking, with the right fore paw raised and all others on the ground. The smaller coin was issued on 30th September 1992. In October 2023, the King Charles III 10 Pence coin was presented; the coin design features a capercaillie.
August 10, 2025
Shilling 1702 to 1798 - Price Guide and values
The shilling as a coin was introduced at the beginning of the 16th century during the last years of the reign of Henry VII and until the middle of that century was known as a testoon. It was one of the first English coins to bear a real portrait of the monarch instead of the representative portrait which had served for the previous ten centuries.
July 31, 2025
2 Pounds 2010 Florence Nightingale
During the Crimean War Nightingale astounded the world by taking a team of nurses to Constantinople to care for and comfort the ill and critically injured troops. She was relentless in harrying politicians for desperately needed supplies and through her ceaseless labour brought order and cleanliness to the Barrack Hospital at Scutari, becoming known as The Lady with the Lamp as she tended the wounded at night.
July 22, 2025
Shilling 1663 to 1701 - Price Guide and values
The shilling as a coin was introduced at the beginning of the 16th century during the last years of the reign of Henry VII and until the middle of that century was known as a testoon. It was one of the first English coins to bear a real portrait of the monarch instead of the representative portrait which had served for the previous ten centuries.
July 13, 2025
Farthing 1821 to 1901 - Price Guide and values
After the mint moved from the Tower of London to Tower Hill the production of gold and silver coins took precedence over copper in the Great Recoinage of 1816. The production of copper coins did not resume until the reign of King George IV (1820-1830), when farthings were produced in 1821.
July 7, 2025
Crown 1703 to 1751 - Price Guide and values
By 1751 the popularity of the silver crown had declined and it evidently played a limited role in circulation.
June 23, 2025
2 Pence - 1717 to 1800 - Price Guide and values
Because of the rising price of silver the penny became progressively smaller and from the Restoration of Charles II in 1660 it was struck only for use as part of the Royal Maundy. In 1797 to alleviate this coin shortage, the government authorised Matthew Boulton to strike copper pennies and twopences at his Soho Mint in Birmingham.
June 12, 2025
Half-Sovereign 1980 to 2025 added
In 1980, the first Elizabeth II Half Sovereigns available to the public were issued, in proof quality, and in 1982, the first half sovereigns sold as bullion coins. Both issues carried the second coinage portrait of Elizabeth II, by Arnold Machin on their obverses, with the Pistrucci design as the reverse.
June 9, 2025
Third Guinea 1797 to 1813 - Price Guide and values
This gold coins were minted only in the reign of George III. The third guinea (seven shilling piece), a guinea being worth 21 shillings in sterling specie, was introduced in Great Britain by a proclamation of 29 November 1797.
June 6, 2025
From the archives: The East India Company outside India
The East India Company (E.I.C.) was granted its Charter in 1600 and sent out its first expedition in 1601. It carried trade goods and coined silver, some of which may have been the trade coins now better known as Portcullis money, struck in 1600. The 8, 4, 2 and 1 reales were struck without a portrait, which was said to ensure their acceptance in Muslim states (human representation is not acceptable in Islam). However, this was not repeated since the pieces failed to replace the well established Spanish dollars.
June 3, 2025
Penny 1718 to 1807 - Price Guide and values
Because of the rising price of silver the penny became progressively smaller and from the Restoration of Charles II in 1660 it was struck only for use as part of the Royal Maundy. In 1797 the penny was struck for the first time as a large copper coin. These cartwheel pennies of 1797 proved popular and continued to circulate, along with later and slightly lighter copper pennies, until 1860.
June 2, 2025
Sovereign 1974 to 2022 added
No Sovereigns were struck in the first few years of the decimal era and in 1974, Machin's coinage portrait graced the chief coin of the world for the first time. Interestingly, a 1974 Sovereign was the very last coin to be struck at the premises in Tower Hill, London, before production moved to the 35-acre site in Llantrisant, South Wales.
May 27, 2025
2 Pence 1971 to 2025 - Price Guide and values
Before the Royal Arms, the Badge of the Prince of Wales can be found on 1971 to 2008 two pence coins. It consists of a plume of ostrich feathers within a coronet, and above, the German motto ICH DIEN (I serve). The first copper-plated steel 2p coins were struck in 1992. The reason for this change was the increase in the price of metals on the world markets. The coins have a mild steel core and are electroplated with copper - consequently, they are magnetic. In October 2023, the King Charles III 2 Pence coin was presented; the coin design features a red squirrel.
May 21, 2025
Half Penny 1717 to 1807 - Price Guide and values
From 1672 until 1936 the image of Britannia appeared on the reverse of the half penny. In 1717 a new contract was signed and a Royal Warrant issued for the production of a new halfpenny. The halfpennies struck in 1717 and 1718 looked slightly odd as they were smaller, thicker and somewhat lighter than the previous issues. George III halfpennies were produced with three distinct coins.
May 19, 2025
3 pence - 1834 to 1837 - Price Guide and values
The 3 Pence role changed in 1845, when it began to be issued in large numbers for general circulation. This further attempt to popularise the coin proved successful, no doubt in part because of the large and inconvenient size of the copper coinage.
May 13, 2025
John Mills and the Dove of Peace
For the 80th anniversary of VE Day (Victory in Europe) on May 8, 1945, the Royal Mint released a new 50 Pence coin. The coin features a version of John Mills dove of peace. Mills first accepted design was the 50 Pence Normandy Landings on D-Day coin in 1994.
May 10, 2025
From the archives: The Gonzagas
The Gonzagas came from Mantua, a city with a population of about 100,000 souls in an area of 20,000 hectares. It was part of the Holy Roman Empire. In the 13th century the Bonacolsi family had become the hereditary Capitane del Popolo, although they were nominally democratically elected. Their power was increased by the simple expedient of exiling recalcitrant aristocrats and was such that they gained the title of Imperial Vicar of Mantua from the Emperor Henry VII.
May 6, 2025
Half Crown 1703 to 1751 - Price Guide and values
By 1751 the popularity of the silver crown had declined and it evidently played a limited role in circulation.
May 1, 2025
5 Pence - 1968 to 2025 - Price Guide and values
The National emblem of Scotland, a thistle royally crowned was the design on the reverse of this denomination before the Royal Arms. The first use of the thistle as a royal symbol of Scotland was on silver coins issued by James III in 1470. After a review of the United Kingdom coinage in 1987, the Government announced its intention to issue a smaller 5p coin. In October 2023, the King Charles III 5 Pence coin was presented; the coin design features an oak spring tree.
April 30, 2025
Half Crown 1663 to 1701 - Price Guide and values
Like the crown, the half-crown was introduced as a gold coin during the reign of Henry VIII and, also like the crown, under Edward VI in the year 1551 it was issued as a silver coin. The issue of gold half-crowns ceased in the 17th century, but the silver half-crown continued in circulation.
April 28, 2025
From the archives: Medals as gifts in ancient Rome
Roman medals or, as they are usually called, Roman medallions, are not an easy class to define. We can start by saying that they were not. They were not awards for bravery; soldiers in the Roman army were rewarded with decorative discs (phalerae) which could be fixed to their uniform. Nor, indeed, were Roman medals in the modern sense – they were not privately produced metal objects intended to be sold as souvenirs of events like royal coronations or great exhibitions.
