The Royal Mint - The Sovereign 2015 Collection

05 Nov 2014

The Royal Mint has launched the latest collection of its world renowned flagship coin - The Sovereign - in what is likely to be a vintage year for the organisation and for United Kingdom coinage.

The Sovereign, along with its iconic St George and the dragon reverse design, has been widely recognised as a symbol of strength and stability since its introduction in 1817 - but the legend of St George is not the only tale that Sovereign coins can tell. Britain's monarchs have played their own role in The Sovereign story since 1489, enabling us to trace history through the nations’ Sovereigns on The Royal Mint's flagship coin.

Since 1953 the four definitive coinage portraits of Her Majesty The Queen have witnessed some remarkable social and economic changes in British history, culminating in the most recent coinage portrait by Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS which has adorned Britain’s coinage since 1998.

In what is likely to be regarded as a vintage year, The Sovereign coin of 2015 will not only be the last to bear the respected Rank-Broadley portrayal, but will also be the first to bear the new portrait when it is revealed - for The Sovereign 2015 will be struck with two portraits within the same year.

Director of Royal Mint Museum, Kevin Clancy, said: “This is a significant year for The Royal Mint’s Sovereign story, as The Sovereign of 2015 will be the last to feature Ian Rank-Broadley’s sculptural 1998 portrait of The Queen. Since its re-introduction by George III, the coin and its sovereign portraits have seen some of the most remarkable social and economic changes in British history”.

The Sovereign Collection includes five Proof standard coins, available individually (with the exception of the Five-Sovereign Piece and the Double-Sovereign) or in sets of three and five, presented in handsome wooden display cases and accompanied by a numbered Certificate of Authenticity and booklet.