Two pounds (British coin)

This article is about the circulating £2 coins first issued 1998 (dated 1997) and the commemorative coins issued from 1986 to 1996. For earlier two pound coins, see Two pounds (British gold coin).

Two pounds

United Kingdom
Value	2 pounds sterling
Mass	12 g
Diameter	28.4 mm
Thickness	2.5 mm
Edge	Milled, with incuse lettering
Composition	Outer ring: Nickel-brass (76% Cu, 20% Zn and 4% Ni) Centre: Cupro-nickel (75% Cu , 25% Ni)
Years of minting	1997–present
Obverse
File:British two pound coin 2015 obverse.png
Design	Queen Elizabeth II
Designer	Ian Rank-Broadley
Design date	1998
Reverse
Design	History of Technological Achievement
Designer	Bruce Rushin
Design date	1997

The British two pound (£2) coin is a denomination of the pound sterling. Its obverse has featured the profile of Queen Elizabeth II since the coin’s introduction. Two different portraits of the Queen have been used, with the latest design by Jody Clark being introduced in 2015. The reverse features an abstract design symbolising the history of technological achievement. A new reverse design featuring Britannia began to enter circulation during 2015.

The coin was introduced on 15 June 1998 (coins minted 1997) after a review of the United Kingdom's coinage decided that a general-circulation £2 coin was needed. The new bi-metallic design replaced a series of commemorative, uni-metallic coins which were issued between 1986 and 1996 to celebrate special occasions. Although legal tender, these coins have never been common in everyday circulation.

As of March 2014 there were an estimated 417 million £2 coins in circulation with an estimated face value of £831.756 million.

Design

The reverse of the coin, designed by Bruce Rushin, is an abstract design symbolising the history of technological achievement, accompanied by the words TWO POUNDS above, and the year of minting below. This was the first bi-metallic coin to be produced for circulation in Britain since the tin farthing with a copper plug produced in 1692, and is the highest denomination coin in common circulation in the UK. The coin consists of an outer yellow metal nickel-brass ring made from 76% copper, 20% zinc, and 4% nickel, and an inner steel-coloured cupro-nickel disc made from 75% copper, 25% nickel. The coin weighs 12 grams and is 28.4 millimetres in diameter.

The design itself was first tried out in 1994 when the Royal Mint produced a short run of demonstration pieces to the new bi-metal standard. These pieces were not for circulation and were simply intended to test the manufacturing process. The coin was technically similar to the version which eventually entered circulation with the Maklouf effigy of Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse and the image of a sailing ship similar to that previously used on the reverse of the pre-decimal halfpenny piece. The inscription on the reverse read ROYAL MINT TRIAL 1994 with an edge inscription based on the one pound coin which read DECUS ET TUTAMEN ANNO REGNI XLVI, meaning "An ornament and a safeguard – in the 46th year of her reign". The 1994 pieces were never legal tender but were eventually released for sale as part of a presentation set in 1998. At the same time in 1994 the Royal Mint produced a mono-metallic trial two-pound coin, with the same ship reverse and inscription, but otherwise similar to the earlier commemorative coins. These were never issued in presentation sets, and so are much scarcer than the bi-metallic version.

Because of technical difficulties, the 1997-dated coins, which bear the effigy of Queen Elizabeth II by Raphael Maklouf, were not released to circulation until June 1998 (the same time as the 1998-dated coins). 1998 and later dated coins bear the effigy of the Queen by Ian Rank-Broadley. The Maklouf-effigy coins bear the inscription ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA F D on the obverse; the Rank-Broadley coins bear the inscription ELIZABETH II DEI GRA REG FID DEF.

The reverse of the regular-issue coin, designed by Bruce Rushin, bears a concentric design symbolically representing technological development from the Iron Age, through the Industrial Revolution and the Electronic Age to the Internet, with the inscription TWO POUNDS above the design and the date below. An oddity of the design is that it depicts nineteen interlocking gears. Because there is an odd number of them, the mechanism could not actually turn (except as a Möbius strip). The coin has the edge inscription STANDING ON THE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS taken from a letter by Isaac Newton to Robert Hooke, in which he describes how his work was built on the knowledge of those that had gone before him. "If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." (Newton was Warden and later Master of the Royal Mint.)

File:£2 coin Britannia reverse.png

The new reverse design featuring Britannia will enter circulation during 2015.

In February 2015, the Royal Mint announced a new design featuring Britannia by Antony Dufort will replace the previous design. The new coins will feature the edge inscription QUATUOR MARIA VINDICO, meaning "I will claim the four seas", an inscription previously featured on coins bearing the image of Britannia.

The comparative rarity of the Maklouf-effigy coins ("the ones with the necklace") has led to an urban myth that they are much more valuable than the other coins, but this is not true – there were over 13 million 1997-dated £2 coins issued. Another urban myth about the coin is that putting it in the freezer overnight causes the cupro-nickel centre to pop out, a claim which had been true of some early mintings of the similarly bimetallic Canadian 2 dollar coin.

Variants

In addition to the standard designs there have been several variant reverse designs used on the £2 coin to commemorate important events. These are summarised in the table below.

Year	Event	Design	Edge Inscription	Designer
1986	XIII Commonwealth Games	Cross of St Andrew, crown of laurel leaves and Scottish Thistle	XIII COMMONWEALTH GAMES JULY 1986	Norman Sillman
1989	Tercentenary of the Bill of Rights	Cypher of 'W&M' (King William and Queen Mary) interlaced surmounting a horizontal Parliamentary Mace and representation of the Royal Crown above and the dates 1689 and 1989 below, all within the inscription 'Tercentenary of the Bill of Rights'	None (milled)	John Lobban
1989	Tercentenary of the Claim of Right	Cypher of 'W&M' (King William and Queen Mary) interlaced surmounting a horizontal Parliamentary Mace and representation of the Royal Crown above and the dates 1689 and 1989 below, all within the inscription 'Tercentenary of the Claim of Right'	None (milled)	John Lobban
1994	Tercentenary of the Bank of England	The Bank's Corporate Seal including the Crown and Cypher of King William and Queen Mary and the dates 1694–1994	SIC VOS NON VOBIS (Translation > "Thus we do, but not for ourselves")	Leslie Durbin
1995	50th Anniversary of the end of the Second World War	A stylised representation of a Dove as the symbol of peace	1945 IN PEACE GOODWILL 1995	John Mills
1995	50th Anniversary of the founding of the United Nations	50th anniversary symbol of United Nations and a fanning pattern of flags with the inscription NATIONS UNITED FOR PEACE above and the dates '1945–1995' below	None (milled)	Michael Rizzello
1996	10th European Football Championship	A stylised representation of a football, with the date of 1996 centrally placed and encircled by sixteen small rings	TENTH EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP	John Mills
1999	1999 Rugby World Cup	Design depicts a stadium, on which is superimposed a rugby ball and goalpost. The date '1999' above separated by goal-posts from the value 'TWO POUNDS' below	Rugby World Cup 1999	Ron Dutton
2001	100th Anniversary of Marconi's 1st Wireless Transmission across the Atlantic	Radio waves decorating centre and outer border while a spark of electricity linking the zeros of the date represents the generation of the signal	WIRELESS BRIDGES THE ATLANTIC...MARCONI 1901...	Robert Evans
2002	XVII Commonwealth Games in Manchester	Stylised figure of an athlete holding a banner and the inscription XVII Commonwealth Games 2002. Behind the athlete is a circle containing a flag – there are four different versions of this coin, each with one of the flags of Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England in this circle	SPIRIT OF FRIENDSHIP, MANCHESTER 2002	Matthew Bonaccorsi
2003	50th Anniversary of the discovery of DNA	A representation of the double helical structure of DNA with the words DNA Double Helix above and 'TWO POUNDS' and the dates '1953–2003' below	DEOXYRIBONUCLEIC ACID	John Mills
2004	200th Anniversary of the first steam locomotive by Richard Trevithick	A representation of a steam locomotive engine with the words 'TWO POUNDS' above and inside a cog wheel, the words R.TREVITHICK 1804 INVENTION INDUSTRY PROGRESS 2004 as a circumscription	None (milled with an incuse railway line motif)	Robert Lowe
2005	400th anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot	An arrangement of crossiers, maces and swords surrounded by stars and the dates 1605 & 2005. Denomination TWO POUNDS below	REMEMBER REMEMBER THE FIFTH OF NOVEMBER	Peter Forster
2005	60th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day	Design depicts St Paul's Cathedral illuminated by searchlights and the value 'TWO POUNDS' sbove and the dates 1945–2005 below	In Victory Magnanimity in Peace Goodwill	Bob Elderton
2006	Bicentennial of the birth of Isambard Kingdom Brunel	Depiction of a section of the roof of Paddington Station with the dates 2006 above and the name BRUNEL to the right and the denomination TWO POUNDS below	SO MANY IRONS IN THE FIRE	Robert Evans
2006	Bicentennial of the birth of Isambard Kingdom Brunel	A portrait of Isambard Kingdom Brunel with two of his engineering achievements, encircled by a chain with the denomination TWO POUNDS above and the date 2006 below	1806–1859 ISAMBARD KINGDOM BRUNEL ENGINEER	Rod Kelly
2007	Tercentenary of the Act of Union between England and Scotland	A design dividing the coin into four quarters, with a rose and a thistle occupying two of the quarters and a portcullis in each of the other two quarters. The whole design is overlaid with a linking jigsaw motif and surrounded by the dates "1707" and "2007", and the denomination "TWO POUNDS"	UNITED INTO ONE KINGDOM	Yvonne Holton
2007	Bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade in the British Empire	The date "1807" with the "0" depicted as a broken chain link, surrounded by the inscription "AN ACT FOR THE ABOLITION OF THE SLAVE TRADE" and the date "2007"	AM I NOT A MAN AND A BROTHER	David Gentleman
2008	Olympic Handover Ceremony	A flag showing the five Olympic rings being passed from a hand on the left to a hand on the right. The surrounding inscription reads "BEIJING 2008" left of image and "LONDON 2012" to right. The London 2012 olympic logo is at the bottom of the coin overlapping both metals	I CALL UPON THE YOUTH OF THE WORLD	The Royal Mint Engraving Team
2008	The Centenary of the London Olympic Games of 1908	Four lanes of a running track extend from bottom left and converge into distance towards top right. The lane numbers show "1908" across the lanes with "TWO POUNDS 2008" written along the lanes. The inscription "LONDON OLYMPIC CENTENARY" is shown around the upper right half of the coin	THE 4TH OLYMPIAD LONDON	Thomas T Docherty
2009	250th Anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns	A handwriting style of font reads [sic] "we'll tak a cup a' kindness yet, for auld lang syne". The inscription "1759 ROBERT BURNS 1796" above, "TWO POUNDS" below	SHOULD AULD ACQUAINTANCE BE FORGOT	The Royal Mint Engraving Team
2009	200th Anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth	A profile portrait of Charles Darwin on left, facing right, stares into the face of a chimpanzee on right, facing left. The inscription "1809 . DARWIN . 2009" above, "TWO POUNDS" below	ON THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES 1859	Suzie Zamit
2010	100th Anniversary of the death of Florence Nightingale	The design portrays a pulse being taken, whilst the background symbolises the rays of light from the lamp that Florence Nightingale was known for carrying during her rounds to tend to the wounded troops in the Crimean War. Surrounded by the inscription "1820 – FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE – 1910" with "TWO POUNDS" below	150 YEARS OF NURSING	Gordon Summers
2011	400th Anniversary of the King James Bible	The design features typeset in a replica of the black letter typeface used in the first edition: the reversed, raised text of the printing block on the left and the recessed text of the printed word on the right, taking the form of the quote, ‘In the beginning was the Word’ (John 1:1).’ Inscription "KING JAMES BIBLE" above, "1611–2011" below	THE AUTHORISED VERSION	Paul Stafford & Benjamin Wright
2011	500th Anniversary of the maiden voyage of the Mary Rose	The Mary Rose sailing right, based upon a 1546 pictorial survey of Henry VIII's navy. Inscription "THE MARY ROSE" above, "TWO POUNDS" below	YOUR NOBLEST SHIPPE 1511	John Bergdahl
2012	200th Anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens	A profile outline of Charles Dickens, facing left, created from the titles of Dickens’ famous works. Inscription "1812 CHARLES DICKENS 1870" to left	SOMETHING WILL TURN UP	Matthew Dent
2012	The London 2012 Handover to Rio	The design depicts the moment of a baton handover in a relay race. The hand holding the baton descends from top right, above a sweeping UK flag which twists to become the flag of Brazil below the hand reaching up from bottom left to take the baton. Inscription "LONDON 2012" top left, "RIO 2016" bottom right. The London 2012 olympic logo is at the very top of the coin	I CALL UPON THE YOUTH OF THE WORLD	Jonathan Olliffe
2013	London Underground 150th Anniversary – The Train	The front of a tube train (1967 stock) fills the cupro-nickel centre of the coin as if approaching out of a tunnel formed by the surrounding nickel-brass outer ring of the coin. Inscription "1863 · LONDON UNDERGROUND · 2013" above	Linear representation of the Tube map	Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby
2013	London Underground 150th Anniversary – The Roundel	A representation of the London Underground logo with "1863" above and "2013" below	MIND THE GAP	Edwina Ellis
2013	The 350th Anniversary of the Guinea	A recreation of the design on what became known as the "spade guinea": a shield with the arms of King George III. Surrounding inscription "ANNIVERSARY OF THE GOLDEN GUINEA 2013"	WHAT IS A GUINEA? ‘TIS A SPLENDID THING	Anthony Smith ARBS
2014	100th Anniversary of the Outbreak of the First World War	A representation of the famous recruitment poster featuring Lord Kitchener with the legend "YOUR COUNTRY NEEDS YOU". Surrounding inscription "THE FIRST WORLD WAR 1914–1918" with "2014" below	THE LAMPS ARE GOING OUT ALL OVER EUROPE	John Bergdahl
2014	500th Anniversary of Trinity House	The beacon of a lighthouse shining out to left and right. Surrounding inscription "1514 TRINITY HOUSE 2014" with "TWO POUNDS" below.	SERVING THE MARINER	Joe Whitlock-Blundell and David Eccles
2015	800th Anniversary of the Magna Carta	King John is signing the Charter witnessed by a bishop and baron. Surrounding inscription "MAGNA CARTA" with "1215 - 2015" below	FOUNDATION OF LIBERTY	John Bergdahl
2015	The Royal Navy	Iron Duke class battleship in profile with a lone seaplane on the starboard side and sea birds on the port side. Surrounding inscription "THE FIRST WORLD WAR 1914 - 1918" with "2015" below	THE SURE SHIELD OF BRITAIN	David Rowlands
2016	William Shakespeare	Comedy - Jesters hat and stick. Surrounding inscription "WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE" with "2016" below	All the Worlds a Stage	John Bergdahl
2016	William Shakespeare	History - crown with a dagger through the middle of the crown. Surrounding inscription "WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE" with "2016" below	The Hollow Crown	John Bergdahl
2016	William Shakespeare	Tragedy - skull with a rose. Surrounding inscription "WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE" with "2016" below	What a piece of work is a man	John Bergdahl
2016	The Army		FOR KING AND COUNTRY	John Bergdahl
2016	The Great Fire of London		THE WHOLE CITY IN DREADFUL FLAMES	Aaron West

Mintages £2 Coins

Bi-metallic coin – total
1997 ~ 13,734,625 1998 ~ 8 1999 ~ 38,652,000 2000 ~ 25,770,000 2001 ~ 39,542,750 2002 ~ 13,024,750 2003 ~ 21,830,250 2004 ~ 16,986,000 2005 ~ 19,168,750 2006 ~ 32,095,500 2007 ~ 26,260,000 2008 ~ 31,935,000 2009 ~ 15,931,000 2010 ~ 13,065,000 2011 ~ 26,390,030 2012 ~ 4,745,000 2012 ~ 8,190,000 2013 ~ 17,420,250

Bi-metallic coin – commemoratives issued into circulation

1999 ~ 4,933,000 (Rugby World Cup) 2001 ~ 4,558,000 (Marconi) 2002 ~ 771,750 (Commonwealth Games – Scotland) 2002 ~ 588,500 (Commonwealth Games – Wales) 2002 ~ 485,500 (Commonwealth Games – Northern Ireland) 2002 ~ 650,500 (Commonwealth Games – England) 2003 ~ 4,299,000 (DNA) 2004 ~ 5,004,500 (Trevithick) 2005 ~ 10,191,000 (World War Two) 2005 ~ 5,140,500 (Gunpowder Plot) 2006 ~ 7,928,250 (Brunel – portrait) 2006 ~ 7,452,250 (Brunel – achievements) 2007 ~ 7,545,000 (Act of Union) 2007 ~ 8,445,000 (Abolition of Slave Trade) 2008 ~ 910,000 (1908 Olympic Games) 2008 ~ 918,000 (Beijing Olympic Games Handover) 2009 ~ 3,903,000 (Charles Darwin) 2009 ~ 3,253,000 (Robert Burns) 2010 ~ 6,175,000 (Florence Nightingale) 2011 ~ 975,000 (King James Bible) 2011 ~ 1,040,000 (The Mary Rose) 2012 ~ 845,000 (Rio Olympic Games Handover) 2012 ~ 8,190,000 (Charles Dickens – 200th Anniversary) 2013 ~ 1,690,000 (London Underground – train) 2013 ~ 1,560,000 (London Underground – roundel) 2013 ~ 2,990,000 (Anniversary of the Guinea)

Uni-metallic coin
1986 ~ 8,212,184 1989 ~ 4,777,891 1994 ~ 1,443,116 1995 ~ 6,056,506 1996 ~ 5,141,350

See also

• Coins of the pound sterling
• Banknotes of the pound sterling

External links

• Royal Mint – £2 coin
• Coins of the UK – Decimal £2 Coins
• The Pemember 'error' on the £2 Gunpowder Plot commemorative