Obverse. Photo © NumisCorner.com
  • 50 Pence 1980, KM# 71, Isle of Man, Elizabeth II, Christmas, Victorian Era
  • 50 Pence 1980, KM# 71, Isle of Man, Elizabeth II, Christmas, Victorian Era
  • 50 Pence 1980, KM# 71, Isle of Man, Elizabeth II, Christmas, Victorian Era, Dieletters position and style
Description

AA, AB, AC, AD, BC are dieletters. These letters used are all uppercase and they take their distinctive style from Hiberno-Norse runes. They always appear on the reverse of the coins. Dieletters tell what die to stamp the coin was used. When AA gets worn or broken it is replaced by AB and so on. So AA is most common, AB is scarcer, etc.

Obverse

Depicts the second crowned portrait of HM Queen Elizabeth II facing right, wearing the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara, surrounded by the inscription, the mintmark (PM) and the date below.

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.

Engraver: Arnold Machin

ISLE OF MAN ELIZABETH II 1980
PM

Reverse

Depicts a Victorian-era Christmas port scene featuring an early steamship, four-in-hand, and children playing with snowmen.

A four-in-hand is a carriage drawn by a team of four horses having the reins rigged in such a way that it can be driven by a single driver. The stagecoach and the tally-ho are usually four-in-hand coaches.

Before the four-in-hand rigging was developed, two drivers were needed to handle four horses. However, with a four-in-hand, the solo driver could handle all four horses by holding all the reins in one hand, thus the name.

CHRISTMAS
50

Edge

50 Pence

2nd portrait
KM# 71
Characteristics
Type Commemorative Issue (Non-circulating)
Material Cupronickel
Weight 13.5 g
Diameter 30 mm
Thickness 2.3 mm
Shape polygon
Sides 7
Alignment Medal
Mint
Pobjoy Mint (PM)

Related coins

3rd portrait

International Isle of Man Tourist Trophy Race

Cupronickel, 8 g, ⌀ 27.3 mm