New Coin Issues

British Lion Meets the American Eagle

The Royal Mint has launched a commemorative coin featuring the British Lion and the American Eagle side by side. Designed by renowned American artist and sculptor John Mercanti – previously Chief Engraver at the US Mint between 2006 and 2010 – the symbolic reverse design is intended to commemorate the enduring relationship between the United Kingdom and the United States of America.

According to the mint, the partnership signifies a unique collaboration which combines expert American design with British minting excellence. ‘John’s reverse design skilfully brings the two icons together in one harmonious composition’, said Rebecca Morgan, Director of Commemorative Coin at The Royal Mint.

A 1kg version of the coin has been produced, available in either gold or silver proof editions, in addition to 5, 2, and 1oz gold or silver proof issues.

Pobjoy Mint Produces Its Final Coin

Following the announcement of its closure earlier this year (see CMN October), Pobjoy Mint produced a special final coin to mark the occasion and the retirement of Mint Master Taya Pobjoy.

Issued on behalf of the British Virgin Islands government, the coin depicts a rearing Pegasus with its wings spread. The territory’s coins have often featured horses in past years and, in addition to the Mint Master’s interest in horse riding, the mythical winged horse was an obvious choice to feature on its last coin issue, said Pobjoy Mint.

The coin also features a unique privy mark, a horseshoe with the letter ‘T’ inscribed within, further representing Taya Pobjoy’s passion for horses. The obverse of the coin depicts the effigy of King Charles III.

Pobjoy Mint produced both 1oz proof silver and 1oz gold versions of the coin, although they are no longer able to buy from the mint, which ceased sales of legal tender, commemorative or bullion coins at the end of last month.

The Royal Mint Issues Second Bond Film Coin

The Royal Mint has released the second coin in its latest seven coin series paying tribute to iconic secret agent character James Bond. This coin, ‘Bond Films of the 1970s’, pays tribute to the second decade of the films featuring on global cinema screens.

The coin design depicts ‘Wet Nellie’ in the foreground’ – a submarine built in the shape of a Lotus Esprit S1 sports car that features in ‘The Spy Who Loved Me’, the tenth Bond film in total and the fourth film of the decade. Each 1970s Bond film title has been inscribed in the background, with the ‘007’ logo depicted at the bottom of the coin.

As with the previous coin in the series, TRM has produced a BU coin with a denomination of £5, in addition to five precious metal versions – two gold proof and three silver proof coins.

Monnaie de Paris Engineers the Modern and Mechanical

To commemorate the centenary of Gustave Eiffel’s death – the French civil engineer and architect of the world famous Eiffel Tower and several other iconic monuments – Monnaie de Paris has created a collection of gold and silver coins. Amongst these is a €25 silver proof coin that features an NFC chip on its reverse which, when scanned, reveals the coin’s technical specifications.

The obverse of the coin features a portrait of Gustave Eiffel posing in front of an arch of the tower that bears his name. The portrait has been drawn in such a way that the features of the face, the hair and the clothes of the man are made of rivets, as if Gustave Eiffel was one with the metal structures that he imagined throughout his life.

The reverse of the coin features representations of some of the architect’s major works, with a depiction of the Eiffel Tower from above in the centre of the coin. The positioning of the iconic monument divides the coin design into several zones, with a cross-section of the Statue of Liberty to the left, the Garabit viaduct above, and the aeroplane designed by Gustave Eiffel, the LE, to the right. An image of the Maria Pia de Porto bridge straddles the face value of the at the bottom of the design.

The chip also enables the owner of the coin to register for a digital certificate on the blockchain, from a dedicated Monnaie de Paris mobile application which provides privileged access to a selection of content dedicated to Gustave Eiffel and his work. The coin owner is then able to view documents from the archives of the Musée d’Orsay, selected by Monnaie de Paris and the association of Gustave Eiffel’s descendants.

According to the Monnaie de Paris, two years of research and development were necessary to overcome the technical challenges posed by the integration of an NFC chip within a coin.

IPZS Releases Annual Coin Series

Issued by the Italian Ministry of Economic and Finance and produced by Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato (IPZS) – the Italian mint and printers – the country’s latest annual coin series has been released. Each of the 10 coins in the series carries a distinctive meaning, and offer a detailed look at the cultural, historical, and institutional richness of the country, says IPZS.

The focus of the 2023 numismatic collection are the two €2 coins, with one dedicated to Italian writer Alessandro Manzoni and the other commemorating the centenary of the country’s Air Force. The former features a half-length portrait of Manzoni, inspired by an image of the writer that appeared on the one hundred thousand lire banknote issued in 1967.

The second €2 coin depicts an interpretation of the Air Force logo, with the central circles split to form the two zeroes in the number ‘100’, with the vapour trail (or contrail) formed by a plane in the sky bisecting the logo. An older biplane marks the beginning of the trail, with a modern current plane at the top of the trail.

Mintage of the collection has been limited to 4,000 sets.