Royal Mint issues limited £2 coins to honour Royal Navy

Role in First World War commemorated by coins on HMS Belfast.

One hundred commemorative £2 coins are being given to visitors aboard HMS Belfast in London.

The coins will be handed to lucky recipients in their change, and the Royal Mint is urging people to keep an eye on the coins they’re being handed, just in case they get one.

Honouring the Royal Navy

The new coin, pictured above (click to expand), and below up close, was created to commemorate the role of the Royal Navy in the First World War. It was designed by military artist David Rowlands, and features a picture of a Royal Navy battleship.

The coins have been struck as part of the partnership between Imperial War Museums and the Royal Mint, who are delivering a various coins between 2014 and 2018 to mark the centenary of the First World War and its legacy today.

Shane Bissett, Director of Commemorative Coin at The Royal Mint, said that the Mint “felt it right that we should dedicate that expertise and heritage to telling the story of the First World War throughout this centenary anniversary.”

“As an island nation, Britain has been largely dependent on the seas for supplies and communications. The Royal Navy’s command of the oceans during the First World War kept Britain supplied and the front line reinforced until victory finally came, and we wanted to mark the important role that they played during the conflict.”

He went on to explain that a slightly different version of these new £2 coins will be in circulation later in the year and will be among the first to feature a new portrait of the Queen.

How to get hold of one

If you’d like one of these, you could try your luck in the shop at HMS Belfast, or you can go online and buy one from the Royal Mint’s website.

This will set you back £10 plus a £3 delivery fee, despite still legally bearing a value of just £2. Coins struck before March will bear the current portrait of the Queen, and those struck from March onwards will bear a new portrait.

While exact sales figures are not available for publication, the Royal Mint confirmed that “thousands of the coins have already been purchased” and that there was “no mintage limit for these coins, so we could end up striking tens of thousands depending on demand for the design.”

If you find one

The Royal Mint is asking that people who receive the coins in their change from HMS Belfast to share a photo via its Facebook page or post the photo on Twitter using the hashtag #coinhunt. 

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