2 Pounds 2001 - Marconi and the first transatlantic wireless transmission
By Coinsanduk | Thursday, 26 September 2024
A legal tender £2 coin, with a special reverse design, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the first transatlantic wireless transmission, was introduced into general circulation, beginning October 15, 2001.
This £2 coin was produced by the Royal Mint to commemorate one of the greatest technological advances of modern times - the first international radio transmission across the Atlantic, from Cornwall to Newfoundland, by Guglielmo Marconi.
The coin symbolises the impact this initial signal has had on communication in the hundred years since 1901.
The £2 coin is also unusual in that, for the first time in the Royal Mint's history, the design was subject to public consultation, with more than 13,000 members of the public making their views known on three short-listed designs. The winning designer was Robert Evans, a leading Welsh artist who was also a senior engraver at the Royal Mint.
The coin is bi-colour (white centre and yellow outer ring) and the design mirrors the first radio signal - radio waves can be seen both in the centre and in the outer ring, while a spark of electricity linking the zeros of the date represents the generation of the signal.
Commemorative coins are only issued to mark particularly important occasions or anniversaries and this new coin is no exception. The first transatlantic radio signal - instrumental in the creation of the modern communications systems we have at our fingertips today - altered our lives immeasurably.
- Roger Holmes, Deputy Master (Chief Executive) of the Royal Mint
In addition to the circulating coins from banks and post offices, a special commemorative version of the Marconi coin was available from the Royal Mint in a presentation pack priced £6.95. Also available in silver and gold versions priced £28.50 and £295 respectively.
Guglielmo Marconi (1874-1937) was an Italian inventor, electrical engineer, physicist, and politician. He is credited as the inventor of radio.
Marconi was also an entrepreneur, businessman, and founder of The Wireless Telegraph & Signal Company in the United Kingdom in 1897 (which became the Marconi Company).
Specifications
- Composition
- Outer: Nickel-Brass (76% copper, 4% nickel, 20% zinc)
- Inner: Cupro-nickel (75% copper, 25% nickel)
- Diameter: 28.4 mm
- Weight: 12 g
- Thickness: 2.5 mm
