KING CHARLES III CORONATION COINS

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V26 2023 INDEX E-SYLUM ARCHIVE

The E-Sylum: Volume 26, Number 19, May 7, 2023, Article 32

David Pickup passed along this Royal Mint web page with information about the makers of the coins commemorating the coronation of King Charles III. Thank you! -Editor

On 6 May 2023, the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III will take place at Westminster Abbey. In honour of this significant celebration, we are delighted to announce that we will be releasing a coronation coin collection that bears The King's first official crowned coinage portrait. Featuring curated historic sets and beautifully crafted coins available across a number of denominations, including a UK 50p coin, £5 coin, The Sovereign, and a limited number of fine gold and silver coins struck in a variety of sizes, the collection features one of three exclusive reverse designs.

The designer behind the reverse of the UK 50p coin in the collection is Natasha Jenkins, a product designer at The Royal Mint.

Natasha Jenkins has worked for The Royal Mint for nearly seven years, and this is the third time The Royal Mint Advisory Committee has selected one of her designs for use on a UK coin. Her other designs chosen for inclusion appear on the Remembrance Day 2020 £5 coin and Commonwealth Games 2022 UK 50p coin.

When my manager, Lee R. Jones, gave me a call to say that I had won the 50p design for the coronation, I was very shocked – I really couldn't believe it! When I enter any competitions for The Royal Mint, I never actually think I will win. I'm always extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to take part! I was just as shocked this time round as I was when I first won a competition in 2020.

It's an honour to have a coin that represents such an iconic time in our British history. In the future I will be able to look back and show my children this coin that I designed for King Charles III's coronation and feel proud.

To read the complete article, see:
Meet the Maker: Natasha Jenkins (https://www.royalmint.com/shop/monarch/charles-iii/coronation/meet-the-maker-natasha-jenkins/)

A heraldic designer who has a prolific portfolio when it comes to creating designs for coins and medals, Timothy Noad has designed the reverse of the £5 ‘crown' in the collection. No stranger to creating celebratory, royal designs, his designs were previously selected for medals commemorating Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II's Golden, Diamond and Platinum Jubilees, as well as three designs, in 2002, 2005 and 2022, for rare changes to the reverse of The Sovereign.

King Charles III Coronation Sovereign reverse

Royal commissions are always special, this one in particular because it relates to the new king and his coronation, perhaps the most important occasion of all. Royal symbols appear on a lot of British coins, so it is always an exciting challenge to find new ways of representing them.

I was delighted and very honoured to be chosen. I know how important crown coins celebrating royal occasions are for all kinds of collectors. For most of us, this will be the first coronation we will ever see. As I created many designs for coins and medals during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, it is thrilling to have my design used for this highly significant occasion in the reign of the new King Charles III.

I remember being given a Silver Jubilee Crown when I was at primary school in 1977 and this led to an interest in collecting coins, including The Queen's Coronation Crown coin of 1953. I had no idea that I would be creating the next one!

I have worked as a heraldic artist at HM College of Arms for 36 years so often portray royal symbols and regalia in my work. Personally, I am fascinated by royal history and pageantry. There is also a local connection. The goldsmith who made the Crown Jewels for Charles II was Sir Robert Vyner, who lived here in Ickenham on the edge of London, where I have also lived for my whole life.

To read the complete article, see:
Meet the Maker: Timothy Noad (https://www.royalmint.com/shop/monarch/charles-iii/coronation/meet-the-maker-timothy-noad/)

As with all such projects that involve the members of the Royal Family, I look forward to my work being seen and appreciated at the highest levels of society.

I felt a degree of satisfaction and pride, mixed with a certain amount of trepidation in that it was a very detailed design that would require a good deal of very careful work in the modelling stage.

As is the case with many of the coins that I have designed for royal occasions, I looked to the past for my inspiration. In this instance, I looked at the style of decoration prevalent during the reign of Charles I.

Thankfully, over the years, I have amassed a quite large library of books that feature heraldry and decorative design through the ages. I have also worked in the antique trade as a restorer for many years, so I have a fairly wide knowledge of the subject.

The process I use during the design stage is in itself one of iteration. I begin by sketching out my initial design on tracing paper, then by a process of overlaying more sheets of tracing I can manipulate and rearrange the content until I am satisfied with the finished result. At this point I transfer the finished image to card for presentation.

To read the complete article, see:
Meet the Maker: John Bergdahl (https://www.royalmint.com/shop/monarch/charles-iii/coronation/meet-the-maker-john-bergdahl/)

The tradition of producing coronation medals has been in place for centuries. Historically, gold, silver and bronze medals have been struck to commemorate the coronation of a monarch's coronation, which are then given to members of the Royal Family as well as selected members of the household, members of state and public servants.

To commemorate the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III, we have struck a coronation medal that is exclusively available to purchase from The Royal Mint Experience. Edwina Ellis, who has designed several coins for The Royal Mint over the years, including a set of four Bridge £1 coins, created the winning design for the medal.

I think a good part of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth feel connected to the monarchy, as it did not change for most of their lifetimes. Although any connections felt towards royalty are one-sided for most of us, perhaps they are real enough? I'm older than King Charles III and, just like him, I am still working. I remember when the last king died, my mother explained to me why the Australian Broadcasting Corporation were playing solemn music all day. I feel quite connected to this subject matter!

I tried to think of as many different aspects of the coronation as I could, but I kept coming back to the royal regalia. It bristles with symbolism, history and meaning, and St Edward's Crown is its centrepiece.

I started with a visit to Westminster Abbey, photographing and drawing for inspiration. I then pored over books on the regalia. Looking back at the last coronation ceremony of Queen Elizabeth II in film, stills and the order of service was revelatory, too. But anything, however moot, must be graphic, fit the space, and tell a story – or it's out.

I found the St Edward's Crown to be the most compelling object to represent the coronation of King Charles III. It is only ever used for the actual act of the coronation and is never touched by anyone who isn't the reigning monarch, the Archbishop of Canterbury or the Crown Jeweller.

Discovering that Westminster Abbey also bristles with symbolism, history and meaning, and its façade offset the crown's symmetry was a tricky part of the design to get right. The fan vaulted interior, the choir screen and the coronation chair all fell by the wayside through the process, so that the St Edward's Crown could be the focus of the final design.

The main challenge was getting the St Edward's Crown to work just right with the setting. Fitting and juxtaposing the crown and the location of Westminster Abbey was a long journey that I hope is hidden. A good finished design has to look a little spontaneous: nobody needs to know how long I wrestled with specific details!

Strangely, the article failed to include an image of the medal. Luckily, David found an image on the Royal Mint's Twitter feed. -Editor

"The portrait is similar to some of the Commonwealth coins of George VI."

David also sent this information about a Charles II coronation medal. Thanks. -Editor

At the coronation following the Restoration commemorative medallions were distributed to the congregation. The diarist Samuel Pepys recorded that medals [were] flung up and down by my Lord Cornwallis of silver, but [Pepys] could not get any. Another witness, Elias Ashmole, noted medals, flung abroad… medals both of silver and gold… as a princely Donation or Largesse…

Bust of Charles II crowned in royal ermine robes, wearing collar and George of the Garter. On the obverse Charles II in royal robes, holding the sceptre, is seated on a throne; Peace, hovering over him, places the crown upon his head. The inscription reads EVERSO . MISSVS . SVCCVRRERE . SECLO . XXIII . APR . 1661. Inscription translation: Sent to support a fallen age, 23 April, 1661.