Description

When Her Majesty The Queen was crowned in 1953, the entrance to Westminster Abbey was guarded by 10 fantastical creatures – The Queen’s Beasts – created by sculptor James Woodford RA. First sculpted in plaster, the Queen's Beasts have had several homes since their debut, now residing in the Canadian Museum of History in Quebec. However, James Woodford RA also sculpted replicas of the beasts in Portland stone that now sit outside the Kew Gardens in London.

The Queen’s Beasts initially launched as a bullion series in 2016 transitioned nicely onto a collector’s edition in 2017 with the Lion of England launching the series of Proof-quality gold and silver coins. In 2021 the last of the beasts were released with the Griffin of Richard III, which completed the entire 10-coin set. The line-up of coronation beasts is now complete but the celebrations continue with a special coin reuniting all ten beasts in one design.

The coin designed by Jody Clark, who was the youngest designer to have created a definitive coinage portrait of Her Majesty The Queen, and introduced it onto British coinage in 2015. Clark’s work can now be seen on both sides of one coin, a rare position as a modern coin designer.