The Royal Mint remembers the fallen with its new annual Remembrance Day poppy coin

The Royal Mint is finally issuing its first ever official Remembrance Day coin for the United Kingdom after spending years issuing them for Alderney, the Channel Island closest to France. The design or format hasn’t really been affected by the change in issuer, although in a very cool touch, a 2.5% donation from every purchase is being made to Imperial War Museums.

To be honest, all of these coins follow a quite limited path, with the obvious exception of Coin Invest Trust and their superb poppy-shaped issue. Depicting poppys in a field with an inscribed quote from that most poignant of poems, In Flanders Fields. This is a nice coin by Stephen Taylor and a fine tribute to a generation that really should never be forgotten. The obverse, as you’d expect from a Royal Mint coin, depicts the Jody Clark penned effigy of Queen Elizabeth II.

Two variants are on offer, both struck in sterling silver and carrying an identical design on an identical diameter planchet. The one standard ounce coin (28.28 grams) has a mintage of 5,000 pieces, while the double-thickness and weight piedfort variant tops out at 1,500 units. Both coins are boxed and include a certificate of authenticity. Available now, the lighter coin is £82.50 and the heavier one, £155.00.

2017 REMEMBRANCE DAY PROOF SILVER COIN

MINTS DESCRIPTION

A member of The Royal Mint Coin Graphic Design Team has taken inspiration from the renowned poem “In Flanders Fields” as the foundation of this year’s Remembrance Day coin. The poppy is a symbol synonymous with remembrance and the traditions that surround it, making it the main focal point of the 2017 Remembrance Day coin.

The coin was designed by Royal Mint Graphic Designer, Stephen Taylor, and is the second design of Stephen’s to appear on a United Kingdom coin – he also created the reverse design to celebrate Her Majesty The Queen becoming Britain’s longest reigning monarch in 2015.

Stephen said of his Remembrance Day design: “I started my research by looking at words and symbols that are connected with Armistice Day, but realising that the poppy is by far the most synonymous with remembrance and the traditions that surround it, that became my focus.

“I chose natural poppies with a realistic, wildflower quality, echoing the flowers John McCrae would have seen growing when he wrote the poem, ‘In Flanders Fields’. It’s a poignant reminder of the brave men and women who have lost their lives or been injured in conflicts past and present, enabling new life to grow from their sacrifice.”

SPECIFICATION

NAME STANDARD (£82.50) PIEDFORT (£155.00)
DENOMINATION £5 UKP £5 UKP
COMPOSITION 0.925 silver 0.925 silver
WEIGHT 28.28 grams 56.56 grams
DIAMETER 38.61 mm 38.61 mm
FINISH Proof Proof
MODIFICATIONS Colour highlighting Colour highlighting
MINTAGE 5,000 1,500
BOX / COA Yes / Yes Yes / Yes
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