
The date 1999 above, separated by goalposts from the value TWO POUNDS below. The design depicts a stadium, on which is superimposed a rugby ball and goalpost. Timeless, symbolic, stirring and inspirational, this stunning interpretation of Britannia is respectful of times past but recasts her for a brand new era. The design, in four concentric circles, depicts mankind's industrial and technological progress from the Iron Age to the Internet. The £2 coin is legal tender for any amount. However, since millions of these coins were minted, this is simply not the case. The most common misconception is that the £2 coin bearing the Raphael Maklouf portrait of the Queen, in which she is wearing a necklace, was made in very modest numbers. Because of the two different portraits, however, many confusing stories have arisen. The £2 coin was eventually launched on 15 June 1998, when millions of both versions of the coin were released. Production was placed on hold, whilst further tests were carried out, and resumed in 1998, featuring the new portrait of Her Late Majesty by Ian Rank-Broadley on the obverse. Concerns, however, emerged from the vending industry prior to the issue date. Originally, the intention was to issue the £2 coin in November 1997 and millions of coins were struck with the Raphael Maklouf portrait of Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse in readiness for launch. The words that were eventually chosen were taken from a letter written in 1676 by Isaac Newton to his fellow scientist Robert Hooke, acknowledging the debt he owed to others: 'If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants'
#American coins pictures with names series
The winning artist, Bruce Rushin, an art teacher from Norfolk, based his design on a series of concentric circles telling the story, through symbolic devices, of technological development from the Iron Age to the Industrial Revolution and from the Computer Age to the internet.Īn appropriate edge inscription had to be chosen before the recommended design could be submitted to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and then to Queen Elizabeth II, for approval. The consensus of opinion from the consultation favoured a bicolour coin, because it would be easily distinguishable from the other coins in circulation.Ī new design was required for the reverse and it was decided that a competition, open to members of the general public, was the way to proceed. A consultation process took place with the vending machine industry, members of the public and special interest groups, such as the RNIB and Age Concern.


After a review of the United Kingdom coinage in 1994, it emerged that there was a requirement for a £2 coin to enter general circulation.
