Crafting Royal Heritage – the Buckingham Palace 2024 £5 Coin

Commemorative • Buckingham Palace

For the past 300 years, Buckingham Palace has thrived and flourished under the masterful and creative contributions of countless architects, sculptors, painters and monarchs, each of whom has left an indelible mark on its evolution. In 2024, we take immense pride in commemorating the evolution of this illustrious establishment through a truly magnificent collaboration with artist Henry Gray and Royal Collection Trust.

Buckingham Palace

Henry Gray, a visionary artist, has left a lasting impact on numismatic design with his exceptional portfolio. The artist’s contributions to the numismatic world include reverse designs for coins honouring significant landmarks and figures such as the British Red Cross and the inventor Alexander Graham Bell. His multifaceted artistic pursuits have endowed him with a unique visual storytelling style, seamlessly transforming narratives into captivating imagery.

Faced with many choices due to the density of ornamentation, the artist experimented with various interior and exterior details for this £5 coin. Ultimately, the Palace’s facade took precedence, encircled by a pattern taken from the balustrade of the interior Grand Staircase. We caught up with Henry Gray to hear more about his design.

What excited you most about working on this project?

“It was working to meet a very challenging brief. Initially, the ask was to provide views of Buckingham Palace that challenged the most commonly known facade view of the Palace. So, I worked to produce designs with dynamic angles to create unusual and exciting views of the palace, whilst also retaining that instant recognition that I felt was essential to have.”

How did you approach the initial design?

“My approach was to try and go beyond just depicting a representational view of Buckingham Palace. I felt it was essential to create a narrative device that would allow a deeper engagement. I experimented with designs that included multiple views from different angles, exciting and unusual type treatments, detail, plan and zoomed-in views, and by trying to include interior and exterior architectural details.”

Were there aspects you knew that you wanted to include from the beginning?

“Buckingham Palace is overflowing with a wealth of detail, ornament and history. On this project, I felt my job was to provide a wealth of choice. I didn’t feel my role was as an ‘artist’ as I wasn’t presenting my creative vision. I felt more like a designer, using other creatives’ work and representing it in a way that could instil more profound interest in the viewer. So, I created as many options that included as many angles and aspects of the Palace as possible and left it up to the viewer to decide which one excited them the most.”

What were the main challenges you found during the design process?

“It’s the constant challenge of reducing the scale and distilling the subject; this time squeezing 108 metres of ornamental architecture onto a pocket-sized canvas, whilst still retaining instant recognition, was a fun challenge to overcome.”

How was the overall experience designing a coin for such an iconic British landmark?

“It’s definitely sparked an interest. There are so many architecturally exciting and historically interesting buildings that I would love to try and do another.”