Obverse. Photo © NumisCorner.com
  • 50 Pence 2011, KM# 1171, United Kingdom (Great Britain), Elizabeth II, London 2012 Summer Olympics, Field Hockey
  • 50 Pence 2011, KM# 1171, United Kingdom (Great Britain), Elizabeth II, London 2012 Summer Olympics, Field Hockey
Description

The 2012 Summer Olympics, formally the Games of the XXX Olympiad and commonly known as London 2012, took place in London and to a lesser extent across the United Kingdom from 25 July to 12 August 2012. During the Games, Michael Phelps became the most decorated Olympic athlete of all time, winning his 22nd medal. Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Brunei entered female athletes for the first time, so that every currently eligible country has sent a female competitor to at least one Olympic Games. Women's boxing was included for the first time, thus the Games became the first at which every sport had female competitors. The final medal tally was led by the United States, followed by China and host Great Britain.

Obverse

Fourth crowned portrait of HM Queen Elizabeth II facing right, wearing the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara.

The Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara was a wedding present in 1947 from her grandmother, Queen Mary, who received it as a gift from the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland in 1893 on the occasion of her marriage to the Duke of York, later George V. Made by E. Wolfe & Co., it was purchased from Garrard & Co. by a committee organised by Lady Eve Greville. In 1914, Mary adapted the tiara to take 13 diamonds in place of the large oriental pearls surmounting the tiara. At first, Elizabeth wore the tiara without its base and pearls but the base was reattached in 1969. The Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara is one of Elizabeth's most recognisable pieces of jewellery due to its widespread use on British banknotes and coinage.

ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA FIDEI DEFENSATRIX means Elizabeth II, by the grace of God, Queen and Defender of the Faith.

Engraver: Ian Rank-Broadley

ELIZABETH·II·D·G· REG F·D· 2011
IRB

Reverse

Two female hockey players challenging for the ball, with the London 2012 logo above and the denomination, "50 PENCE", below.

Field hockey at the 2012 Olympic Games in London took place from 29 July to 11 August at the Riverbank Arena within the Olympic Park. Germany won the men's tournament for the fourth time, and the women's tournament was won by the Netherlands — their third Olympic women's hockey title.

Field hockey is a team sport of the hockey family. The earliest origins of the game date back to the Middle Ages in England, Scotland, France and the Netherlands. The game can be played on a grass field or a turf field as well as an indoor board surface. Each team plays with eleven players, including the goalie. Players use sticks made out of wood, carbon fibre, fibre glass or a combination of carbon fibre and fibre glass in different quantities to hit a round, hard, plastic ball. Only one end of the stick is allowed to be used. The specific goal-keeping sticks have another curve at the end of the stick, this is to give them more surface area to save the ball.

The London 2012 Summer Olympics logo is four abstract shapes placed in a quadrant formation spelling out "2012". The word "London" is written in the shape representing the "2", while the Olympic rings are placed in the shape representing the "0".

Engraver: Robert Evans

2012
london
50 PENCE

Edge
Characteristics
Type Commemorative Issue (Circulating)
Material Cupronickel
Weight 8 g
Diameter 27.3 mm
Thickness 2 mm
Shape polygon
Sides 7
Alignment Medal
Mint
Royal Mint

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