United Kingdom (Great Britain) Victoria 1 Florin

History

1 Florin 1887-1892, KM# 762, United Kingdom (Great Britain), Victoria

Obverse. Photo © Heritage Auctions

Description

The British florin, or two shilling coin, was issued from 1849 until 1970. In 1887, as part of a coinage redesign for Victoria's Golden Jubilee, a new obverse design, showing the queen as an older woman, debuted on the gold and silver coinage. This was dubbed the "Jubilee Head". The Jubilee Head quickly proved unpopular, due in part to the crown worn by the Queen, which was deemed ridiculously small.

Victoria (1819–1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she adopted the additional title of Empress of India. She inherited the throne at the age of 18, after her father's three elder brothers had all died, leaving no surviving legitimate children. Victoria married her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1840. Their nine children married into royal and noble families across the continent, tying them together and earning her the sobriquet "the grandmother of Europe". Her reign of 63 years and seven months is known as the Victorian era and was longer than that of any of her predecessors. It was a period of industrial, cultural, political, scientific, and military change within the United Kingdom, and was marked by a great expansion of the British Empire.

Obverse	Crown, jewelry Small Diamond Crown of Queen Victoria Order, medal etc. Order of the Thistle Person (king, queen, tsar etc.) Victoria Depicts a bust of a mature queen Victoria left. The Queen's hair is brushed smoothly off a much higher forehead than previous portraits. The ear is exposed displaying a large pearl drop earring. Victoria wears a small crown which was specially commissioned and paid for by the Queen. Containing 1,187 diamonds and made from silver, the crown was named the Small Diamond Crown of Queen Victoria. It is a miniature imperial and state crown made at the request of Queen Victoria in 1870 to wear over her widow's cap following the death of her husband, Prince Albert. It was perhaps the crown most associated with the queen and is one of the Crown Jewels on public display in the Jewel House at the Tower of London. The Queen's dress is made of heavy silk and is decorated with a wide ruffle. She wears The Order of the Thistle and the First Class Badge of the Royal Order of Victoria and Albert pinned on her left shoulder. VICTORIA DEI GRATIA means Victoria, by the grace of God. The engraver's initials J.E.B. (Joseph Edgar Boehm) are in relief in the truncated shoulder. VICTORIA DEI GRATIA J.E.B.
Reverse	Coat of arms England, Scotland Order, medal etc. Order of the Garter Crowned cruciform shields bearing the three lions passant for England, the lion rampant within a double truessure flory for Scotland, and the Gaelic harp for Ireland. In the angles between the shields are sceptres with a Garter Star in the centre. The Order of the Garter (formally the Most Noble Order of the Garter) is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III in 1348 and regarded as the most prestigious British order of chivalry in England and the United Kingdom. The star, which is worn pinned to the left breast, was introduced in the 17th century by King Charles I and is a colourfully enamelled depiction of the heraldic shield of St. George's Cross, encircled by the Garter, which is itself encircled by an eight-point silver badge. Each point is depicted as a cluster of rays, with the four points of the cardinal directions longer than the intermediate ones. BRITANNIARUM REGINA FIDEI DEFENSATRIX means the Britains Queen, Defender of the Faith. Engraver: Leonard Charles Wyon BRITT: REG: 18 87 FID: DEF:
Edge	Reeded (milled)