It is impossible to imagine modern Britain without the influence of Queen Victoria and the era of incredible progress and innovation to which she lends her name. Princess Alexandrina Victoria was born in 1819, rising to the throne as Queen Victoria in 1837 and reigning through a period of unprecedented change. Crowned queen at just 18, Queen Victoria’s first coins were issued in 1838 and featured the ‘Young Head’ portrait by William Wyon RA on the obverse. Issued at the time of her Golden Jubilee in 1887, Sir Joseph Edgar Boehm’s ‘Jubilee Head’ was struck until 1893. That same year, the final portrait, by Sir Thomas Brock RA, was introduced. Referred to as the ‘Old Head’ or ‘Veiled Head’, the design shows Queen Victoria in her crown and veil and was struck until her death in 1901.

Many believe that the Veiled Head portrait of Queen Victoria by Sir Thomas Brock shows the queen in mourning for her beloved husband Prince Albert, who died in 1861. Following Prince Albert’s death, Queen Victoria’s grief was so deep that she wore traditional black mourning clothes for the rest of her life. A stark contrast to the celebratory portrait it replaced, it is a great example of how monarchs used coinage to present themselves to their subjects through their money