Alan Turing, the subject of the current £50 polymer bank note from the Bank of England, is being honored on 50-penny coins  issued by the Royal Mint.

The base metal, silver and gold collector coins were released July 4. They are not expected to be released into circulation.

Turing was the scientist instrumental in breaking Nazi codes during World War II, but he faced discrimination because of his homosexuality.

Turing’s achievements range from formulating ground-breaking theories in the fields of computing, mathematics and biology to codebreaking during World War II.

The life and work of the “father of computing” inspires the new 50-penny design by artists Matt Dent and Christian Davies.

The reverse features the British scientist’s name with a representation of the Bombe machine used during World War II. In a special nod to his work, the designers incorporated hidden word sequences, representing a Turing quote and significant location, as well as the designers’ initials.

The Jody Clark effigy of Queen Elizabeth II appears on the obverse.

The coin made to honor Turing’s legacy is the sixth and final release in the Innovation in Science 50-penny series, which recognizes some of history’s greatest scientific minds including Charles Babbage, John Logie Baird, Rosalind Franklin and Stephen Hawking.

The Alan Turing coins are available at www.royalmint.com, which also has more information about the Innovation in Science series.

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