Britannia coin
Encyclopedia
| Silver Britannia (U.K.) | |
|---|---|
| Face Value: | £2 GBP |
| Mass: | 32.454 g (incorporating 1 Troy ounce Troy ounce The troy ounce is a unit of imperial measure. In the present day it is most commonly used to gauge the weight of precious metals. One troy ounce is nowadays defined as exactly 0.0311034768 kg = 31.1034768 g. There are approximately 32.1507466 troy oz in 1 kg... of fine Silver |
| Composition: | 95.8% Ag Silver Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal... |
| Diameter: | 40.00mm |
| Edge: | Reeded |
| Years of Minting: | 1997–present |
| Reverse | |
| Design: | Britannia Britannia Britannia is an ancient term for Great Britain, and also a female personification of the island. The name is Latin, and derives from the Greek form Prettanike or Brettaniai, which originally designated a collection of islands with individual names, including Albion or Great Britain. However, by the... |
| Design Date: | 2009 |
| Obverse | |
| Design: | Queen Elizabeth II |
| Design Date: | 2009 |
Britannia coins
COinS
ContextObjects in Spans, commonly abbreviated COinS, is a method to embed bibliographic metadata in the HTML code of web pages. This allows bibliographic software to publish machine-readable bibliographic items and client reference management software to retrieve bibliographic metadata. The...
are British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
bullion coin
Bullion coin
A bullion coin is a coin struck from precious metal and kept as a store of value or an investment, rather than used in day-to-day commerce. Investment coins are generally coins that have been minted after 1800, have a purity of not less than 900 thousandths and are or have been a legal tender in...
s issued by the Royal Mint
Royal Mint
The Royal Mint is the body permitted to manufacture, or mint, coins in the United Kingdom. The Mint originated over 1,100 years ago, but since 2009 it operates as Royal Mint Ltd, a company which has an exclusive contract with HM Treasury to supply all coinage for the UK...
in gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
since 1987 and in silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
since 1997.
Britannia gold coins contain one troy ounce
Troy ounce
The troy ounce is a unit of imperial measure. In the present day it is most commonly used to gauge the weight of precious metals. One troy ounce is nowadays defined as exactly 0.0311034768 kg = 31.1034768 g. There are approximately 32.1507466 troy oz in 1 kg...
of gold and have a face value
Face value
The Face value is the value of a coin, stamp or paper money, as printed on the coin, stamp or bill itself by the minting authority. While the face value usually refers to the true value of the coin, stamp or bill in question it can sometimes be largely symbolic, as is often the case with bullion...
of £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
100. Gold Britannias also are issued in fractional sizes of one-half, one-quarter, and one-tenth of a troy ounce and with face values of £50, £25, and £10 respectively. The gold coins have a millesimal fineness
Millesimal fineness
Millesimal fineness is a system of denoting the purity of platinum, gold and silver alloys by parts per thousand of pure metal by mass in the alloy. For example, an alloy containing 75% gold is denoted as "750". Many European countries use decimal hallmark stamps Millesimal fineness is a system of...
of 917 (91.7% or 22 carat gold) with the non-gold component being copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
until 1989 and silver from 1990.
Britannia silver coins contain one troy ounce of silver and have a face value of £2. Silver Britannias also are issued in fractional sizes of one-half, one-quarter, and one-tenth of a troy ounce and with face values of £1, 50p
Penny
A penny is a coin or a type of currency used in several English-speaking countries. It is often the smallest denomination within a currency system.-Etymology:...
, and 20p respectively. The silver coins have a millesimal fineness of 958 (95.8% or Britannia silver
Britannia silver
Britannia silver is an alloy of silver containing 95.84% silver, with the balance usually copper.This standard was introduced in England by Act of Parliament in 1697 to replace sterling silver as the obligatory standard for items of "wrought plate"...
).
Gold Britannia
The gold coins have a millesimal finenessMillesimal fineness
Millesimal fineness is a system of denoting the purity of platinum, gold and silver alloys by parts per thousand of pure metal by mass in the alloy. For example, an alloy containing 75% gold is denoted as "750". Many European countries use decimal hallmark stamps Millesimal fineness is a system of...
of 917 (91.7% or 22 carat gold) with the non-gold component being copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
until 1989 and silver from 1990.
Gold Britannia specifications (gold content, not total weight)
- One ounce: diameter 32.69 mm, (31.104 gGramThe gram is a metric system unit of mass....
) - Half ounce: diameter 27.00 mm, (15.552 g)
- Quarter ounce: diameter 22.00 mm,(7.776 g)
- Tenth ounce: diameter 16.50 mm, (3.110 g)
Silver Britannia
Silver Britannias have been released each year beginning in 1997, when a silver proofProof coinage
Proof coinage means special early samples of a coin issue, historically made for checking the dies and for archival purposes, but nowadays often struck in greater numbers specially for coin collectors . Many countries now issue them....
set was offered. In 1997 and in all subsequent even-numbered years the reverse
Obverse and reverse
Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags , seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, obverse means the front face of the object and reverse...
design has depicted a standing Britannia
Britannia
Britannia is an ancient term for Great Britain, and also a female personification of the island. The name is Latin, and derives from the Greek form Prettanike or Brettaniai, which originally designated a collection of islands with individual names, including Albion or Great Britain. However, by the...
figure. Beginning in 1999 and continuing in odd-numbered years, a series of alternate, non-repeating depictions of Britannia have replaced the standing figure on the reverse.
Silver Britannia mintages
| Year | Uncirculated | Proof | Proof sets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | – | 16,005 | 11,832 |
| 1998 | 88,909 | 5,212 | 3,044 |
| 1999 | 69,394 | – | – |
| 2000 | 81,301 | – | – |
| 2001 | 44,816 | 7,643 | 10,000 |
| 2002 | 48,816 | – | – |
| 2003 | 73,271 | 5,456 | 5,000 |
| 2004 | 100,000 | 5,000 | – |
| 2005 | 100,000 | 10,000 | 3,500 |
| 2006 | 100,000 | 2,750 | – |
| 2007 | 100,000 | 7,500 | 2,500 |
| 2008 | 100,000 | 2,500 | 2,500 |
| 2009 | 100,000 | 2,500 | 2,500 |
| 2010 | 100,000 | 2,500 | 2,500 |
Source:
See also
- Bullion coinBullion coinA bullion coin is a coin struck from precious metal and kept as a store of value or an investment, rather than used in day-to-day commerce. Investment coins are generally coins that have been minted after 1800, have a purity of not less than 900 thousandths and are or have been a legal tender in...
(eg. American Gold EagleAmerican Gold EagleThe American Gold Eagle is an official gold bullion coin of the United States. Authorized under the Gold Bullion Coin Act of 1985, it was first released by the United States Mint in 1986.- Details :...
, Australian Gold NuggetAustralian Gold NuggetThe Australian Gold Nugget is a gold bullion coin minted by the Perth Mint. The coins have been minted in denominations of 1/20 oz, 1/10 oz, 1/4 oz, 1/2 oz, 1 oz, 2 oz, 10 oz, and 1 kg of 24 carat gold...
, Canadian Gold Maple LeafCanadian Gold Maple LeafThe Canadian Gold Maple Leaf is the official bullion gold coin of Canada, and is produced by the Royal Canadian Mint. The brainchild of Walter Ott, it is one of the purest gold regular-issue coins in the world with a gold content of .9999 millesimal fineness , with some special issues .99999 fine...
, KrugerrandKrugerrandThe Krugerrand is a South African gold coin, first minted in 1967 to help market South African gold. The coin, produced by the South African Mint, proved popular and by 1980 the Krugerrand accounted for 90% of the gold coin market. The name itself is a compound of Kruger and rand, the South...
South Africa) - Chinese lunar coinsChinese lunar coinsIn 1979, China began minting commorative modern coins. In 1981, China began minting coins to commemorate the Chinese New Year. Typically the obverse features a historical building while the reverse features the lunar animal reproduced from historical Chinese drawings or paintings.- 1981–1992 :The...
- Gold as an investmentGold as an investmentOf all the precious metals, gold is the most popular as an investment. Investors generally buy gold as a hedge or harbor against economic, political, or social fiat currency crises...
- Islamic gold dinarIslamic gold dinarThe modern Islamic gold dinar is a currency that aims to revive the historical gold dinar which was a leading coin of early Islam. They consist of minted gold coins, Dinar, and silver coins, Dirham.-Dinar history:According to Islamic law, the Islamic dinar is a coin of pure gold weighing...
- Silver as an investmentSilver as an investmentSilver, like other precious metals, may be used as an investment. For more than four thousand years, silver has been regarded as a form of money and store of value. However, since the end of the silver standard, silver has lost its role as legal tender in many developed countries such as the...