Designing the new £1 – my top 5…

To coincide with the introduction of a brand new style of £1 coin, the Treasury have opened a national public contest to find the very first design.  So I thought I’d pick out 5 of my favourite designs which have graced the reverse of our pound coins over the last 30 years.

1) Floral Emblems

1985-£1-Gilded-Leek

The Welsh Leek £1

In 1984 the first themed £1 coins were introduced with a series of floral emblems. I’ve singled out the Welsh Leek because it features an edge inscription written in the Welsh language – a rare break from the traditional Latin. PLEIDIOL WYF I’M GWLAD is inscribed around the edge of each coin, which translated means ‘True am I to my country”. The design was struck in two years; 1985 and 1990.

2) Heraldic Emblems

1996-£1-Ireland

The Heraldic Emblem £1 for Northern Ireland

The heraldic emblems series followed in 1995 with some familiar national symbols. The interesting one for me is the Northern Irish design which features a Broighter Collar. The Broighter collar was discovered in 1896 amongst a hoard of gold Iron Age artefacts in Northern Ireland, and is said to be the finest example of Irish La Tène goldworking in Europe. It’s a subtle and commonly overlooked feature of this reverse design.

3) Bridges

2007-Gateshead-Millennium-Bridge

The Millennium Bridge features on this 2007 £1 coin

A change of tack from the Royal Mint in 2004 with iconic bridges from each country being chosen as the subject matter. The bold architectural shape of the Gateshead Millennium Bridge makes for an impressive reverse design and I think it’s the pick of the bunch. Interestingly the bridge itself is the world’s first tilting bridge and won a number of awards for its design and lighting. Each of the bridge coins were only struck in one year, this one is dated 2007.

 4) Capital Cities

£1-edinbugh-proof2

The rarest £1 in circulation is this Edinburgh design

The four capital cities of the United Kingdom was the next theme introduced in 2010 with the Coat of Arms for Belfast, London, Cardiff and Edinburgh featuring as the principal focus of each design. The Edinburgh design is of the most interest to collectors, because it is currently the rarest £1 design in circulation. Less than 1 million were struck, and it is often the only one which eludes even the keenest of Change Checkers.

5) The Royal Arms

1988-£1-Shield

This crowned Royal Arms Shield was only struck in 1988

Of course, in addition to all these commemorative themes are the definitive designs which have followed the same trend since the inaugural pound coin of 1983. Each one features the Royal Arms Shield of the United Kingdom, combining all four of the constituent countries. Look out for this one on the left with the crowned shield. Unlike the others, it was only struck in one year – 1988 – so is a bit more trick to find. Chances are it will also be a bit worse for wear after 26 years in circulation!

 So when the new £1 does enter circulation in 2017, what will it look like? We already know that it will look radically different from the existing coin, but will its design follow a similar trend to those of the past? The extreme change in the coin’s shape may give rise to a similarly extreme rethink in its design, but one thing is for certain – it will forever be a truly significant moment in British numismatic history.


ST 2011 Edinburgh 1 Silver Proof Coin (Both Sides)Own the rare Edinburgh £1 coin in silver

Our friends at the Westminster Collection have a small number of the rare Edinburgh design available in silver.

Click here for more info