Anglican Bishop designs UK’s first Christmas coin
- Published: Nov 7, 2016, 8 AM
The Royal Mint turned to an appropriate source for the design of the United Kingdom’s first Christmas coin.
The Brilliant Uncirculated .999 fine silver £20 coin’s design, a nativity scene inspired by 2,000 years of storytelling, was designed by Bishop Gregory Cameron, who also designed the reverse of the last commemorative round £1 coin, released earlier in 2016.
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Cameron is a bishop of the Anglican Church in Wales, an artist and a coin collector.
Cameron said, “While Christmas is based on a Christian story it is a festival for everyone; a time when we celebrate the affinity and closeness in our own families and beyond, and wish goodwill to all people.”
Coins have been a part of festive traditions and customs for centuries, like stirring a sixpence into the Christmas pudding for good luck. On Christmas Eve, children hang stockings on the mantelpiece hoping to find a coin there in the morning. A generous St. Nicholas is said to have begun this tradition by creeping down the chimney of a poor family to fill the daughters’ stockings with silver coins.
The £20 coin features the Jody Clark effigy of Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse.
The coin is the latest in the Royal Mint’s series of £20 coins available at face value.
The coin weighs 15.71 grams and measures 27 millimeters in diameter. It has a mintage limit of 30,000 pieces and is presented in a specially designed booklet with space for the recipient to note their favorite moments of 2016 and wishes for 2017.
To order the coin, visit the Royal Mint website.
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