In the UK, the first series of pounds and pence depicting King Charles will go into circulation later this year. The new design reflects Charles’ attention to nature. The coins depict squirrels, bees and other animals.
After Charles’ coronation, commemorative coins began to circulate and his face also appeared on coins already in use. But now the King gets his own new series of pence and pounds.
The penny depicts a hazel mouse, whose population has halved in England in fifteen years. 2 pence depicts a red squirrel and 5 pence depicts an oak leaf.
The 10 pence coin depicts a capercaillie (a rare bird found in Scotland), the 20 pence coin depicts a puffin, and the 50 pence coin features an Atlantic salmon. One pound features bumblebees and 2 pounds features the national flowers of the four nations of England (rose, daffodil, thistle and clover).
‘Mint will also appeal to children’
The Royal Mint, the institution that minted the coins, hopes the new coins will help children learn to count and recognize animal figures. The larger song sizes are also noticeable. “It will also appeal to children,” said director Rebecca Morgan.
On the side of the £2 coin is the inscription “in servitio omnium”, which means “in service to all” and comes from his inaugural speech. There is also a tribute to Charles’ two previous kings, with three c’s on the coin.
Charles looked to the left at the coin, opposite his mother. The fact that successive kings look at each other is also common on Dutch coins. Charles did not wear a crown, like previous kings. Queen Elizabeth does wear a crown on the coin.
There are 29 billion British coins in circulation, almost all of which depict Elizabeth’s face. It will continue to dominate Britons’ wallets and piggy banks for now. Next year, Charles will also appear on millions of British banknotes.
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