Mary Gillick Portrait ( 1953 - 1967 )
The first portrait of Her Majesty The Queen to appear
on a coin was issued in 1953. The portrait was fresh, evocative and beautifully
reflected the optimistic mood of the nation as it greeted a new Elizabethan
era. It was designed by Mary Gillick and shows The Queen wearing a wreath. It
was used on both United Kingdom coinage and the coinage of many commonwealth
countries until Arnold Machin’s portrait of The Queen was adopted for decimal
coins.
Arnold Machin RA
Portrait ( 1968 - 1984 )
Although decimalisation did not take place until 1971,
the first decimal coins – the 5p and 10p – entered circulation in April 1968.
They were introduced as replacements of shillings and florins, and because they
corresponded exactly in size and value they were able to circulate together
until 1971 when the coinage officially changed to decimal coins. As such they
served a useful purpose in preparing the public for what was to happen.
As part of the change, a new portrait of The Queen was
adopted for the decimal coins. Designed by Arnold Machin RA, it had in fact
been approved by The Queen as early as June 1964. Like Mary Gillick, Machin
avoided the couped portrait - cut off by the neck - which had been usual on
coins earlier in the century. The wreath, however, was replaced with the tiara
which The Queen had been given as a wedding present from her grandmother, Queen
Mary. A modified version of Machin’s portrait has appeared on definitive
British postage stamps since 1967 – and as a result it is possibly the most
reproduced image in history.
Raphael Maklouf Portrait ( 1985 - 1997 )
From 1985 to 1997, UK circulating coins were struck
bearing a royal portrait by the sculptor Raphael Maklouf. The couped portrait –
cut off at the neck – shows The Queen with the royal diadem which she wears on
her way to and from the State Opening of Parliament. Unlike the Gillick and
Machin portraits of The Queen, Raphael Maklouf’s portrait also included a
necklace and earrings. Having been accused by some of sculpting The Queen
‘flatteringly young’, the artist responded that such critics had misunderstood
his intention which was ‘to create a symbol, regal and ageless’.
A close examination reveals the artist’s initials,
RDM, on the truncation of the neck. The inclusion of the middle letter – for
David – was to ensure that the signature would not be misinterpreted as a
reference to The Royal Mint.
There is a long-standing urban myth that the first
bi-colour £2 coins – bearing the Maklouf portrait and dated 1997 – are rare and
valuable. But given that more than 13 million of these coins were issued, this
is certainly not the case.
Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS Portrait ( 1998 - 2014 )
The idea of replacing the Maklouf portrait had its
origins in a competition held by The Royal Mint to design the obverse of the
1997 Golden Wedding crown. Such was the standard of the entries for the
conjoint portrait of The Queen and Prince Philip that it was decided to explore
the possibility of a new standard portrait for the circulating coins as well.
The winning design by Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS –
introduced in 1998 – makes an interesting contrast with its immediate
predecessor, being less idealised and more strongly realistic. So far as Mr
Rank-Broadley was concerned, there was ‘no need to disguise the matureness of
the Queen’s years. There is no need to flatter her. She is a 70-year-old woman
with poise and bearing’. Conscious that the coinage was getting smaller – the
5p, 10p and 50p coins having been reduced in size in 1990, 1992 and 1997
respectively – he also deliberately made the image as large as possible within
the framework of the coin’s outer edge.
Jody Clark Portrait ( 2015 - )
The portrait of The Queen by Jody Clark was unveiled
in 2015 and is the fifth definitive coinage portrait of Her Majesty. It will
become the fourth portrait of The Queen in circulation, with the Machin,
Maklouf and Rank-Broadley portraits still featuring on the circulating coinage
of the United Kingdom. Jody Clark is the first Royal Mint engraver to design a
definitive royal coinage portrait in over 100 years.
Source : http://www.royalmint.com
