Designing Change: Coins of Elizabeth II
18 September 2008 - 22 February 2009
A temporary exhibition is taking place at the British Museum to coincide with the introduction of the new definitive reverse designs for the United Kingdom coinage. Developed in collaboration with the Royal Mint, the exhibition traces the development of Matt Dent's winning designs. It includes his original submissions to the public competition, the plaster models and trial pieces examined by the Royal Mint Advisory Committee, and a set of dies used for striking the finished coins.
To put the new designs into context, the exhibition also looks at the preparation of a number of other coin designs from the current reign. One section focuses on the designs by Christopher Ironside which were introduced at the time of decimalisation. Displaying unsuccessful ideas as well as early sketches for the now-familiar coins, this part of the exhibition makes use of material from Christopher Ironside's archive which is now owned by the British Museum.
Another section is devoted to the four principal portraits of Her Majesty The Queen which have been used on United Kingdom coins. These portraits, introduced in 1953, 1968, 1985 and 1998, are among the most reproduced images in history.
To coincide with the exhibition, the Royal Mint has published a book, Designing Change: The Art of Coin Design, which seeks to illuminate what lies behind the design of coins. It includes chapters from a range of contributors, including the designer Matt Dent, the Chairman of the Royal Mint Advisory Committee, Sir Christopher Frayling, the acclaimed lettering artist Stephen Raw, and the Head of Historical Services at the Royal Mint, Dr Kevin Clancy. A foreword has been provided by His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh who from 1952 to 1999 served as President of the Royal Mint Advisory Committee.