The 2025 coins being offered in the Royal Mint’s “Great Engravers” collection will pay tribute to the designs used by Benedetto Pistrucci in the creation of the Waterloo medal.

The dies for the Waterloo medal proved to be spectacular works of numismatic art that required 30 years to produce. With great attention to detail, the designs focuses on a rich, allegorical tapestry intended to depict the most minute elements of the battle itself.

The Waterloo medal, though, was never physically struck. However, the dies for the medal were preserved over time and are currently held in the Royal Mint Museum.

With the benefit of modern techniques not known at the time of the dies’ creation, the Royal Mint has reproduced the designs Pistrucci intended. The obverse design was produced  on a collection of coins with the Waterloo Medal, Allied Leaders design, issued in 2024.

The recreation of the Waterloo medal’s reverse design results in the gold and silver Waterloo Medal, Victory 2025 coins.

Records indicate that Pistrucci’s reverse was inspired by an event known as the Gigantomachy, in Greek mythology a battle that pitted giants against the Olympian gods. At stake was the control of the cosmos.

Pistrucci’s design shows a force of 19 giants, who represent the 19-year conflict, tumbling over one another in the border as they are struck by the thunder of Zeus. Two equestrian figures, intended to portray the Duke of Wellington and General Blücher, commanders of the British and Prussian armies that defeated Napoleon Bonaparte at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, take center stage in the design, guided by a figure of a flying Victory.

The Waterloo Medal coins are the second issues in the collection to carry Pistrucci’s design. His classic St. George and the Dragon appeared on a previous issue.

The Waterloo Medal Victory coins feature a common obverse bearing the official coinage portrait of King Charles III by Martin Jennings.

Two Proof .9999 fine gold coins are offered.

A 2-ounce gold £200 selection with a 40-millimeter diameter weighs 62.42 grams. Its maximum mintage is 221 coins, priced at £6,355 each.

A 5-ounce gold £500 gold coin with a 50-millimeter diameter weighs 156.3 grams. Its extremely limited mintage of 40 coins each carry a price of £15,650.

Four .999 fine silver coins are offered.

A Proof 2-ounce silver £5 coin with a 40-millimeter diameter weighs 62.86 grams. Its 3,060-coin mintage is priced at £293 each.

A 5-ounce silver £10 coin and a 10-ounce silver £10 coin each measure 65 millimeters in diameter. The Proof 5-ounce silver £10 coin has a maximum mintage of 510 coins priced at £621 each. The Proof 10-ounce silver £10 coin has a mintage of only 100 coins, each selling for £1,152.

The final option is a 1-kilogram silver coin in a matte finish. Measuring 100 millimeters in diameter, its mintage limit is 127 coins, each priced at £2,906.

Coin sets that include the Waterloo Medal designs will also be available, in four-coin or five-coin options, labeled “The Legacy of the Napoleonic Wars.” For additional information, visit the Royal Mint website at www.royalmint.com.

Connect with Coin World:  
Sign up for our free eNewsletter
Access our Dealer Directory  
Like us on Facebook  
Follow us on X (Twitter)

Whether you’re a current subscriber or new, you can take advantage of the best offers on magazine subscriptions available in digital, print or both! Whether you want your issue every week or every month, there’s a subscription to meet your needs.