By the time Queen Elizabeth II came to the throne in 1952, Britannia had, for almost 300 years, been an enduring feature of British coinage. Having graced the copper halfpennies and farthings since the time of Charles II, she was the natural choice for the reverse of the first penny – the large copper ‘Cartwheel’ penny introduced during the reign of George III. She continued to reign supreme on the copper and later bronze pennies of every monarch up until decimalisation. Following decimalisation she was chosen to appear on the definitive 50p coin and continued to do so until 2008.

Gold and Silver

As a symbol of national pride, Britannia has long occupied a vital place in our affections. What more appropriate subject, therefore, to grace coins that were to appeal to international bullion markets yet be immediately identifiable as British? She featured on the first gold Britannia coins in 1987 and, ten years later, on the first silver bullion Britannia coins. Since then, aspects of her history and character have been interpreted by different artists and the new portrait by Suzie Zamit is the eighth to appear on the Britannia gold and silver coins in the reign of Queen Elizabeth II. It takes a well-deserved place in Britannia’s illustrious numismatic career.

Britannia and the Romans

Britannia her debut on English coins