Pre-decimal: Copper

This article concerns British coinage, the coinage of the United Kingdom. more...

For related topics see:

• British banknotes
• Pound Sterling

Current coinage

The British currency was decimalised on February 15, 1971. The basic unit of currency – the pound (or pound sterling) – was unaffected. Before decimalisation there were 240 (old) pennies in a pound, now there are 100 (new) pence. The new coins were marked with the wording NEW PENNY (singular) or NEW PENCE (plural) to distinguish them from the old. The word "new" was dropped after ten years. The symbol p was also adopted to distinguish the new pennies from the old, which used the symbol d.

Every year, newly minted coins are checked for size, weight, and composition at a Trial of the Pyx. Essentially the same procedure has been used since the thirteenth century. Assaying is now done by the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths on behalf of HM Treasury.

The total amount of coinage in circulation is roughly three and a quarter billion pounds, of which the £1 and £2 coins account for almost two billion pounds .

Obverse Of Modern Coins

All modern coins feature a profile of the current monarch's head. The direction in which they face changes with each successive monarch. There was a small quirk in this alternating pattern when Edward VIII ascended to the throne. George V coin's had him facing the left, as did Edward VIII, his succesor. This was because Edward thought that to be his best side, breaking with tradition (many saw this as portent of a bad reign). However, none of these coins were put into general circulation before Edward abdicated. When George VI came to the throne, he had his coins struck with him facing the left, as if Edward's coins had faced the right (as they should have done in theory). This means that in a timeline of coins used in Britain, George V and VI's coins face to the left, despite the fact they follow directly chronologically. All current coins include the Latin inscription ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA FIDEI DEFENSOR in abbreviated form, which translates as "Elizabeth II, by the grace of God, Queen and Defender of the Faith", with Elizabeth II facing to the right.

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