The Royal Mint – Annual sets 2017, Precious Metal and Base Metal
01 Jan 2017
The Royal Mint reflects the pioneering spirit of Britain with new UK coin designs you will find in your change in 2017
The Royal Mint has unveiled the new circulating coin designs that will appear in our pockets and purses in 2017 – with a strong pioneering theme linking them all.
The headliner for 2017 is undoubtedly the new bi-metal 12-sided £1 coin. It incorporates ground-breaking technology and security features developed by The Royal Mint’s in-house team, and will be the most secure coin in the world when it makes its way into the nation’s pockets in March 2017. Its design, by David Pearce, features the flora of the four nations of the UK emerging from a coronet.
The Jane Austen £2 coin celebrates the Hampshire author who in 1811 at the age of 35 had her first novel, Sense and Sensibility, published anonymously, and went on to become one of the best-loved authors in the world.
The First World War Aviation £2 coin remembers The Royal Flying Corps and its contribution to the defence of Britain’s skies in the First World War using new aircraft technology.
The Sir Isaac Newton 50p coin marks the achievements of one-time Master of The Royal Mint, Sir Isaac Newton, who was pivotal in improving assaying techniques and refining weights and measures to an exacting standard never seen before, as well as undertaking pioneering work in the fields of physics and astronomy for which he is more widely known.
Dr Kevin Clancy, Director of the Royal Mint Museum, says: “This is a particularly significant year in Royal Mint history as we welcome in the new 12-sided £1 coin, with its innovative security features. This year we also mark the achievements of Jane Austen, Sir Isaac Newton and The Royal Flying Corps – all pioneers in their own field. The British public should start to see these coins appearing in their change from Spring 2017.”
For those too keen to wait to find one of the new designs in their change, each of the 2017 UK coins is featured in The Royal Mint’s commemorative annual sets, giving a complete overview of the anniversaries being marked during the year.
Additional information for editors:
The 2017 UK £1 Coin
This is a special year for UK coinage - it is the year that the new 12-sided £1 coin makes its way into the nation’s pockets. Made from two different metals and including ground-breaking technology developed at The Royal Mint, this new 12-sided coin will be the most secure circulating coin in the world, helping to re-define the world of coinage for the future.
More than one billion of the brand new £1 coins are being struck by The Royal Mint in readiness for the launch in March.
The 200th Anniversary of the Death of Jane Austen 2017 UK £2 Coin
The Jane Austen 2017 £2 coin celebrates one of the best-loved authors in the world, 200 years after her death. As a 35-year-old from Hampshire, she saw her first novel, Sense and Sensibility,published anonymously in 1811, after which readers began a love affair with her works which went on to include Pride and Prejudice and Emma. Her books have been translated into more than 40 languages with almost 100 film and television adaptions taking her works to new heights of fame across the globe.
The First World War Aviation 2017 UK £2 Coin
At the outbreak of the First World War few people believed that aircraft would play a major role in the conflict. The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) grew from a force of a few hundred aeroplanes in 1914 into a huge, independent air arm. Its personnel risked their lives testing the new aircraft technology to its limits, and endured the previously unknown effects of altitude, G-forces and freezing temperatures as well as the dangers presented by the war. In 1918 the Royal Flying Corps became the Royal Air Force we know today and has defended the skies ever since.
The Sir Isaac Newton 2017 UK 50p Coin
Sir Isaac Newton was an intellectual giant of the 17th century’s ‘scientific revolution’. He also played a vital role as Master of The Royal Mint for over 30 years, helping make Britain’s currency one of the most respected and admired in the world. Renowned for his zeal in tackling counterfeiters, improving assaying techniques and refining weights and measures to an exacting standard never seen before, his report of 1717 paved the way for the introduction of the ‘Gold Standard’ - a system for valuing a nation's currency still referred to today. Newton used mathematics and rigorous experiments to provide universal descriptions of how nature worked. The coin design is inspired by the scientific theories relating to planets and bodies in space, detailed in Book One of Newton’s Principia Mathematica.