Examples of the standard reverse designs minted until 2008. Designed by Christopher Ironside (£2 coin is not shown)

The standard circulating coinage of the United Kingdom, British Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories is denominated in pounds sterling (symbol "£"), and, since the introduction of the two-pound coin in 1994 (issued to celebrate the Bank of England's 300th anniversary), ranges in value from one penny to two pounds. Since decimalisation, on 15 February 1971, the pound has been divided into 100 (new) pence. Before decimalisation, twelve pence made a shilling, and twenty shillings made a pound. British coins are minted by the Royal Mint in Llantrisant, Wales. The Royal Mint also commissions the coins' designs. As of 14 October 2019, there were an estimated 29 billion coins circulating in the United Kingdom.^[1]

Decimal coins are minted in copper-plated steel (previously bronze), nickel-plated steel, cupronickel and nickel-brass. The one- and two-pound coins are bimetallic. The coins are discs, except for the twenty pence and fifty pence pieces, which have heptagonalcurves of constant width, and one-pound coins, which have twelve edges. All circulating coins have an effigy of Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse, and various national and regional designs, and the denomination, on the reverse. All current coins carry an abbreviated Latin inscription whose full form, ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA FIDEI DEFENSATRIX, translates to "Elizabeth II, by the grace of God, Queen and Defender of the Faith".

In addition to the circulating coinage, the UK also mints commemorative decimal coins (crowns) in the denomination of five pounds. Ceremonial Maundy money and bullion coinage of gold sovereigns, half sovereigns, and gold and silver Britannia coins are also produced. Some territories outside the United Kingdom, which use the pound sterling, produce their own coinage, with the same denominations and specifications as the UK coinage but with local designs.

The English silver penny was derived from another silver coin, the sceat, of 20 troy grains weight, which was in general circulation in Europe during the Middle Ages. In the 12th century, Henry II established the sterling silver standard for English coinage, of 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper, replacing the earlier use of fine silver in the Middle Ages. The coinage reform of 1816 set up a weight/value ratio and physical sizes for silver coins. Silver was eliminated from coins, except Maundy coins, in 1947.

History[edit]

Manufacture[edit]

The history of the Royal Mint stretches back to AD 886.^[2] For many centuries production was in London, initially at the Tower of London, and then at premises nearby in Tower Hill in what is today known as Royal Mint Court. In the 1970s production was transferred to Llantrisant in South Wales.^[3] Historically Scotland and England had separate coinage; the last Scottish coins were struck in 1709 shortly after union with England.^[4]

Coins were originally hand-hammered — an ancient technique in which two dies are struck together with a blank coin between them. This was the traditional method of manufacturing coins in the Western world from the classical Greek era onwards, in contrast with Asia, where coins were traditionally cast. Milled (that is, machine-made) coins were produced first during the reign of Elizabeth I (1558–1603) and periodically during the subsequent reigns of James I and Charles I, but there was initially opposition to mechanisation from the moneyers, who ensured that most coins continued to be produced by hammering. All British coins produced since 1662 have been milled.

Origins of the penny[edit]

The English penny first appeared in Anglo-Saxon times, as a silver coin. It was derived from another silver coin, the sceat, of 20 troy grains weight, which was in general circulation in Europe during the Middle Ages. The weight of the English penny was fixed at ​22 ¹⁄₂ troy grains (about 1.46 grams) by Offa of Mercia, an 8th-century contemporary of Charlemagne. The coin's designated value, however, was 24 troy grains of silver (one pennyweight, or ​¹⁄₂₄₀ of a troy pound, or about 1.56 grams), with the difference being a premium attached by virtue of the minting into coins. Thus, 240 pennyweights made one troy pound of silver in weight, and the monetary value of 240 pennies also became known as a "pound". (240 actual pennies, however, weighed only 5400 troy grains, known as a tower pound, a unit used only by mints. The tower pound was abolished in the 16th century.) The silver penny remained the primary unit of coinage for about 500 years.

The purity, 92.5% silver ("sterling silver") was instituted by Henry II in 1158 with the "Tealby Penny", a hammered coin.

Over the years, the penny was gradually debased until by the 16th century it contained about a third of the silver content of a pure troy 24-grain pennyweight.

Silver content[edit]

From the time of Charlemagne until the 12th century, the silver currency of England was made from the highest purity silver available. But there were disadvantages to minting currency of fine silver, notably the level of wear it suffered, and the ease with which coins could be "clipped", or trimmed.

In the 12th century a new standard for English coinage was established by Henry II — the Sterling silver standard of 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper. This was a harder-wearing alloy, yet it was still a rather high grade of silver. It went some way towards discouraging the practice of "clipping", though this practice was further discouraged and largely eliminated with the introduction of the milled edge seen on coins today.

During the reign of Henry VIII, the silver content was gradually debased, reaching a low of one-third silver. However, in Edward VI's reign, silver purity was increased to sterling again and the first crowns and half-crowns were produced, dated 1551. From this point onwards till 1920, sterling was the rule.

By 1696, the currency had been seriously weakened by an increase in clipping during the Nine Years' War^[5] to the extent that it was decided to recall and replace all hammered silver coinage in circulation.^[6] The exercise came close to disaster due to fraud and mismanagement,^[7] but was saved by the personal intervention of Isaac Newton after his appointment as Warden of the Mint, a post which was intended to be a sinecure, but which he took seriously.^[6] Newton was subsequently given the post of Master of the Mint in 1699. Following the 1707 union between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland, Newton used his previous experience to direct the 1707–1710 Scottish recoinage, resulting in a common currency for the new Kingdom of Great Britain. After 15 September 1709 no further silver coins were ever struck in Scotland.^[8]

As a result of a report written by Newton on 21 September 1717 to the Lords Commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury^[9] the bimetallic relationship between gold coins and silver coins was changed by Royal proclamation on 22 December 1717, forbidding the exchange of gold guineas for more than 21 silver shillings.^[10] Due to differing valuations in other European countries this unintentionally resulted in a silver shortage, as silver coins were used to pay for imports, while exports were paid for in gold, effectively moving Britain from the silver standard to its first gold standard, rather than the bimetallic standard implied by the proclamation.

The coinage reform of 1816 set up a weight/value ratio and physical sizes for silver coins.

In 1920, the silver content of all British coins was reduced from 92.5% to 50%, with some of the remainder consisting of manganese, which caused the coins to tarnish to a very dark colour after they had been in circulation for long. Silver was eliminated altogether in 1947, except for Maundy coinage, which returned to the pre-1920 92.5% silver composition.

The 1816 weight/value ratio and size system survived the debasement of silver in 1920, and the adoption of token coins of cupronickel in 1947. It even persisted after decimalisation for those coins which had equivalents and continued to be minted with their values in new pence. The UK finally abandoned it in 1992 when smaller, more convenient, "silver" coins were introduced.

Monarch's head[edit]

All coins since the 17th century have featured a profile of the current monarch's head. The direction in which they face changes with each successive monarch, a pattern that began with the Stuarts, as shown in the table below:

For the Tudors and pre-Restoration Stuarts, both left- and right-facing portrait images were minted within the reign of a single monarch (left-facing images were more common). In the Middle Ages, portrait images tended to be full face.

There was a small quirk in this alternating pattern when Edward VIII became king in January 1936 and was portrayed facing left, the same as his predecessor George V. This was because Edward thought his left side to be better than his right.^[12] However, Edward VIII abdicated in December 1936 and his coins were never put into general circulation. When George VI came to the throne, he had his coins struck with him facing the left, as if Edward VIII's coins had faced right (as they should have done according to tradition). Thus, in a timeline of circulating British coins, George V and VI's coins both feature left-facing portraits, although they follow directly chronologically.

Currently circulating coinage[edit]

Production and distribution[edit]

All genuine UK coins are produced by the Royal Mint. The same coinage is used across the United Kingdom: unlike banknotes, local issues of coins are not produced for different parts of the UK. The pound coin until 2016 was produced in regional designs, but these circulate equally in all parts of the UK (see UK designs, below).

Every year, newly minted coins are checked for size, weight, and composition at a Trial of the Pyx. Essentially the same procedure has been used since the 13th century. Assaying is now done by the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths on behalf of HM Treasury.

The 1p and 2p coins from 1971 are the oldest standard-issue coins still in circulation. Pre-decimal crowns are the oldest coins in general that are still legal tender, although they are in practice never encountered in general circulation.^[13]

Coins from the British dependencies and territories that use the pound as their currency are sometimes found in change in other jurisdictions. Strictly, they are not legal tender in the United Kingdom; however, since they have the same specifications as UK coins, they are sometimes tolerated in commerce, and can readily be used in vending machines.

UK-issued coins are, on the other hand, generally fully accepted and freely mixed in other British dependencies and territories that use the pound.

An extensive coinage redesign was commissioned by the Royal Mint in 2005, and new designs were gradually introduced into the circulating British coinage from summer 2008. Except for the £1 coin, the pre-2008 coins remain legal tender and are expected to stay in circulation for the foreseeable future.

Coins in circulation[edit]

Estimated as at March 2016^[14]

Dimensions[edit]

Stated as largest value

UK decimal coinage history[edit]

Decimalisation[edit]

Since decimalisation on 15 February 1971 the pound (symbol "£") has been divided into 100 pence. (Prior to decimalisation the pound was divided into 20 shillings, each of 12 (old) pence; thus, there were 240 (old) pence to the pound. The value of the pound itself was unchanged by decimalisation.)

The first decimal coins – the five pence (5p) and ten pence (10p) — were introduced in 1968 in the run-up to decimalisation in order to familiarise the public with the new system. These initially circulated alongside the pre-decimal coinage and had the same size and value as the existing one shilling and two shilling coins respectively. The fifty pence (50p) coin followed in 1969, replacing the old ten shilling note. The remaining decimal coins – at the time, the half penny (​¹⁄₂p), penny (1p) and two pence (2p) — were issued in 1971 at decimalisation. A quarter-penny coin, to be struck in aluminium, was proposed at the time decimalisation was being planned, but was never minted.

The new coins were initially marked with the wording NEW PENNY (singular) or NEW PENCE (plural). The word "new" was dropped in 1982. The symbol "p" was adopted to distinguish the new pennies from the old, which used the symbol "d" (from the Latindenarius, a coin used in the Roman Empire).

Post-1982[edit]

In the years since decimalisation, a number of changes have been made to the coinage. The twenty pence (20p) coin was introduced in 1982 to fill the gap between the 10p and 50p coins. The pound coin (£1) was introduced in 1983 to replace the Bank of England £1 banknote which was discontinued in 1984 (although the Scottish banks continued producing them for some time afterwards; the last of them, the Royal Bank of Scotland £1 note, is still in production as of 2013^[ref]). The designs on the one pound coin changed annually in a largely five-year cycle, until the introduction of the new 12-sided pound coin in 2017.

The decimal half penny coin was demonetised in 1984 as its value was by then too small to be useful. The pre-decimal sixpence, shilling and two shilling coins, which had continued to circulate alongside the decimal coinage with values of ​2 ¹⁄₂p, 5p and 10p respectively, were finally withdrawn in 1980, 1990 and 1993 respectively. The double florin and crown, with values of 20p and 25p respectively, have technically not been withdrawn, but in practice are never seen in general circulation.

In the 1990s, the Royal Mint reduced the sizes of the 5p, 10p, and 50p coins. As a consequence, the oldest 5p coins in circulation date from 1990, the oldest 10p coins from 1992 and the oldest 50p coins come from 1997. Since 1997, many special commemorative designs of 50p have been issued. Some of these are found fairly frequently in circulation and some are rare. They are all legal tender.

The specifications and dates of introduction of the 5p, 10p, and 50p coins refer to the current versions. These coins were originally issued in larger sizes in 1968 and 1969 respectively.

With their high copper content (97%), the intrinsic value of pre-1992 1p and 2p coins increased with the surge in metal prices of the mid-2000s, until by 2006 the coins would, if melted down, have been worth about 50% more than their face value.^[15] (To do this, however, would be illegal, and they would have had to be melted in huge quantities, using quite a bit of energy, to achieve significant gain.) In later years, the price of copper fell considerably. Copper plated steel coins were introduced to replace them.

A circulating bimetallictwo pound (£2) coin was introduced in 1998 (first minted in, and dated, 1997). There had previously been unimetallic commemorative £2 coins which did not normally circulate. This tendency to use the two pound coin for commemorative issues has continued since the introduction of the bimetallic coin, and a few of the older unimetallic coins have since entered circulation.

There are also commemorative issues of crowns. Before 1990, these had a face value of twenty-five pence (25p), equivalent to the five shilling crown used in pre-decimal Britain. However, in 1990 crowns were redenominated with a face value of five pounds (£5)^[16] as the previous value was considered not sufficient for such a high-status coin. The size and weight of the coin remained exactly the same. Decimal crowns are generally not found in circulation as their market value is likely to be higher than their face value, but they remain legal tender.

2008 redesign[edit]

In 2008, UK coins underwent an extensive redesign, which changed the reverse designs, and some other details, of all coins except the £2.^[17] The original intention was to exclude both the £1 and £2 coins from the redesign because they were "relatively new additions" to the coinage, but it was later decided to include the £1 coin.^[18] This was the first wholesale change to British coinage since the first decimal coins were introduced in April 1968. The new coins were initially to be put into circulation in early 2008,^[19] although they did not actually start to appear until mid-2008.

The major design feature was the introduction of a reverse design shared across six coins (1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p, 50p), that can be pieced together to form an image of the Royal Shield. This was the first time a coin design had been featured across multiple coins in this way.^[17] Completing the set, the new £1 reverse featured the Shield in its entirety. The effigy of the Queen, by Ian Rank-Broadley, continued to appear on the obverse of all the coins^[17] until 2015 when it was replaced by the fifth and latest portrait, designed by Jody Clark.

On all coins, the beading (ring of small dots) around the edge of the obverses has been removed. The obverse of the 20p coin has also been amended to incorporate the year, which had been on the reverse of the coin since its introduction in 1982 (giving rise to an unusual issue of a mule version without any date at all). The orientation of both sides of the 50p coin has been rotated through 180 degrees, meaning the bottom of the coin is now a corner rather than a flat edge. The numerals showing the decimal value of each coin, previously present on all coins except £2 and £1, have been removed, leaving the values spelled out in words only.

The redesign was the result of a competition launched by the Royal Mint in August 2005, which closed on 14 November 2005. The competition was open to the public and received over 4,000 entries.^[17] The winning entry was unveiled on 2 April 2008, designed by Matthew Dent.^[17] The Royal Mint stated the new designs were "reflecting a twenty-first century Britain".^[19] An advisor to the Royal Mint described the new coins as "post-modern" and said that this was something that could not have been done 50 years previously.^[20]

The redesign was criticised by some for having no specifically Welsh symbol (such as the Welsh Dragon), because the Royal Shield does not include a specifically Welsh symbol. WrexhamMPIan Lucas, who was also campaigning to have the Welsh Dragon included on the Union Flag, called the omission "disappointing", and stated that he would be writing to the Queen to request that the Royal Standard be changed to include Wales.^[21] The Royal Mint stated that "the Shield of the Royal Arms is symbolic of the whole of the United Kingdom and as such, represents Wales, Scotland, England and Northern Ireland."^[21] Designer Dent stated "I am a Welshman and proud of it, but I never thought about the fact we did not have a dragon or another representation of Wales on the design because as far as I am concerned Wales is represented on the Royal Arms. This was never an issue for me."^[21]

The designs were also criticised for not including a portrayal of Britannia, the female personification of Britain whose image has appeared on British coinage continuously since 1672.^[22] In response to the concern over the loss of Britannia, the chairman of the Royal Mint Advisory Committee stated "There are 806 million Britannias in circulation at the moment [on the old 50p coin]. They will remain in circulation. They will see all of us out, until they die a natural death. So whatever happens, Britannia stays around".^[17]

The Royal Mint's choice of an inexperienced coin designer to produce the new coinage was criticised by Virginia Ironside, daughter of Christopher Ironside who designed the previous UK coins. She stated that the new designs were "totally unworkable as actual coins", due to the loss of a numerical currency identifier, and the smaller typeface used.^[23]

The German news magazine Der Spiegel claimed that the redesign signalled the UK's intention "not to join the euro any time soon".^[24]

Steel 5p and 10p coins[edit]

As of 2012, 5p and 10p coins have been issued in nickel-plated steel, and much of the remaining cupronickel types withdrawn, in order to retrieve more expensive metals. The new coins are 11% thicker to maintain the same weight.^[25][26]

There are heightened nickel allergy concerns over the new coins. Studies commissioned by the Royal Mint found no increased discharge of nickel from the coins when immersed in artificial sweat. However, an independent study found that the friction from handling results in four times as much nickel exposure as from the older-style coins. Sweden already plans to desist from using nickel in coins from 2015.^[27]

2016 £1 coin design change[edit]

In 2016, the £1 coin design was changed from a single-metal round shape to a 12-sided bi-metal design, with a slightly larger diameter. Production of the new coins started in 2016,^[28] with the first, dated 2016, entering circulation 28 March 2017.^[29]

Summary of denominations[edit]

Current[edit]

• One penny (1p; £0.01), 1971–present
• Two pence (2p; £0.02), 1971–present
• Five pence (5p; £0.05), 1968–1990 (reduced to present size); 1990–present
• Ten pence (10p; £0.10), 1968–1992 (reduced to present size); 1992–present
• Twenty pence (20p; £0.20), 1982–present
• Fifty pence (50p; £0.50), 1969–1997 (reduced to present size); 1997–present
• One pound (£1.00), 1983–2016 (design changed from round coin to twelve-sided one),^[30] 2017–present
• Two pounds (£2.00), 1986–1997 (special issues); 1997–present (general issue – bimetallic)
• Five pounds or crown (£5.00), 1990–present (special issues, not in common circulation though still legal tender)[1]
• Twenty pounds (£20.00), 2013–present (special issues, not in common circulation though still legal tender)
• Fifty pounds (£50.00), 2015–present (special issues, not in common circulation though still legal tender)
• One hundred pounds (£100.00), 2015–present (special issues, not in common circulation though still legal tender)

Former[edit]

• Half penny (​¹⁄₂p; £0.005) 1971–1984, demonetised since then
• Twenty-five pence or crown (25p; £0.25), 1972–1981 (special issues, not in common circulation though still legal tender)

Specifications[edit]

Circulating coinage[edit]

^[32]

With their high copper content (97%), the intrinsic value of pre-1992 1p and 2p coins increased with the surge in metal prices of the mid-2000s, until by 2006 the coins, would, if melted down, have been worth about 50% more than their face value.^[15] (To do this, however, would be illegal, and they would have had to be melted in huge quantities to achieve significant gain.) In subsequent years the price of copper fell considerably from these peaks.^[33]

Commemorative issues[edit]

The following are commemorative issues and are seldom encountered in normal circulation due to their precious metal content.

Obsolete coinage[edit]

The following decimal coins have been withdrawn from circulation and have ceased to be legal tender.

* The specifications and dates of 5p, 10p, and 50p coins refer to the larger sizes issued since 1968.

† The specification refers to the round coin issued from 1983–2016. Although obsolete, this coin is still redeemable at banks and the British railway systems, and is still legal tender on the Isle of Man.

UK designs[edit]

Obverse[edit]

All modern British coins feature a profile of the current monarch's head on the obverse. There has been only one monarch since decimalisation, Queen Elizabeth II, so her head appears on all decimal coins, facing to the right (see also Monarch's head, above). However, five different effigies have been used, reflecting the Queen's changing appearance as she has aged. These are the effigies by Mary Gillick (until 1968), Arnold Machin (1968–1984), Raphael Maklouf (1985–1997), Ian Rank-Broadley (1998–2015), and Jody Clark (from 2015).^[34]

All current coins carry a Latin inscription whose full form is ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA FIDEI DEFENSATRIX, meaning "Elizabeth II, by the grace of God, Queen and Defender of the Faith". The inscription appears on the coins in any of several abbreviated forms, typically ELIZABETH II D G REG F D.

From 2008, the circle of dots between the lettering and the rim was removed from the 1p, 2p, 5, and 10p and £1. It was never on the 20p and 50p, and is retained on the £2.

Original reverse designs[edit]

The original standard-issue decimal coinage reverse designs are as follows:

• ​¹⁄₂p (discontinued 1984) — A crown, symbolising the monarch.
• 1p – A crowned portcullis with chains (the badge of the Houses of Parliament).
• 2p – The Prince of Wales's feathers: a plume of ostrichfeathers within a coronet.
• 5p – A crowned thistle, formally "The Badge of Scotland, a thistle royally crowned".
• 10p – A crowned lion, part of the British Coat of Arms (and often is the national animal of England)
• 20p – A crowned Tudor Rose, a traditional heraldic emblem of England (NB With incuse design and lettering).
• 50p – Britannia and lion.
• £1 – Numerous different designs (see below).
• £2 – An abstract design of concentric circles, representing technological development from the Iron Age to the modern day electronic age.

Up until the 2008 redesign, the reverse designs of the one pound coin have followed a five-year cycle. This cycle successively represents, by using royal heraldic badges, each of the four constituent countries of the United Kingdom, namely Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England, with the Royal Coat of Arms used in every fifth year. From 2008 until 2016, a single design based on the Royal Coat of Arms was issued every year, with additional designs representing the nations issued sporadically.

Royal Shield reverse[edit]

The 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p and 50p coin designs post 2008 each depicts a part of the Royal Shield, and form the whole shield when they are placed together in the appropriate arrangement. The Royal Shield is seen in its entirety on the £1 coin.^[37]

• The 1p coin depicts the lower part of the first quarter and the upper part of the third quarter of the shield, showing the lions passant of England and the harp of Ireland respectively
• The 2p coin depicts most of the second quarter of the shield, showing the lion rampant of Scotland
• The 5p coin depicts the centre of the shield, showing the meeting and parts of the constituent parts of the shield
• The 10p coin depicts most of the first quarter of the shield, containing the three lions passant of England
• The 20p coin depicts the lower part of the second quarter and upper part of the fourth quarter, showing the lion rampant of Scotland and the lions passant of England respectively
• The 50p coin depicts the point of the shield and the bottom portions of the second and third quarters showing the harp of Ireland and lions passant of England respectively
• The £1 coin depicts the whole of the Royal Shield
• The standard-issue £2 coin design remains unchanged

Edge designs[edit]

The 1p, 2p, 20p and 50p coins have smooth edges. The 5p, 10p, £1 and £2 coins have milled edges. The milling, in combination with the non-circular shape of the 20p and 50p, serve as the primary means of identification and differentiation between coinage for blind or visually impaired people. Historically, milling also served to discourage coin clipping.

The £1 coin and £2 coins have, inscribed into the milling, words or a decoration related to their face design. Many issues of the £1 coin carry one of the following edge inscriptions:

• DECUS ET TUTAMEN — Latin for "An ornament and a safeguard", a phrase taken from Virgil's Aeneid, and here referring to the fact that the inscription serves both as a decorative feature and as a safeguard against the clipping of the coin's edges (this is not a modern concern, but harks back to the days when circulating coins were made of precious metals). This appears on coins with English-themed, Northern Irish-themed or general UK-themed designs.
• PLEIDIOL WYF I'M GWLAD — Welsh for "True am I to my country", from the Welsh national anthem. This appears on coins with Welsh-themed designs.
• NEMO ME IMPUNE LACESSIT — Latin for "No-one provokes me with impunity", the motto of the Order of the Thistle. This appears on coins with Scottish-themed designs.

The standard-issue £2 coin carries the edge inscription STANDING ON THE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS. Other designs of the coin