The silver Britannia £2 coin had been introduced by Royal Mint UK since 1997. It is the largest and purest legal tender coin of the UK. It is produced in .958 Britannia silver, an alloy comprising 95.8% silver with the rest copper, and contains a full ounce of fine silver. Royal Mint UK has released 2010 Britannia Silver Bullion coin with a new look. A new portrait has been created by Suzie Zamit, UK famous body sculpture artist. The new bullion silver come with attractive gift box.
This is an explanation by Suzie Zamit about the new serene portrait:
I wanted to portray Britannia as strong (almost Amazonian) and courageous looking, but not overly warlike; more peaceful and protective. I have given her a Corinthian-style helmet and incorporated a lion on the design: the lion being the national symbol of courage - I wanted to emphasize the strong and watchful connotations - and this also links in with Greek and Roman coinage which display many animals.
Britannia on the Coinage was the Romans who, in recording their invasion and colonisation of the mysterious island lying beyond Oceanus, a country which they believed full of silver, first portrayed Britannia on their coins. Much later Britannia was to become a fitting symbol to grace the reverse of the copper coins of Charles II when, in direct allusion to the then war with the Dutch, her image symbolised her sovereignty of the seas. Universally recognised as the personification of Britain, she has graced the coins of every British monarch since. On the coinage of the present Queen, she featured on every pre-decimal penny and following decimalisation was chosen to appear on the 50p coin. She was chosen to grace the new gold coinage introduced in 1987, the coins of highest denomination in the realm, and on the silver bullion coins introduced in 1997.
The Britannia £2 coin has been struck in Britannia silver, an alloy of silver containing 95.8% silver and the rest of copper; weight 32.45gm and 40 mm in diameter. The Britannia standard of silver was introduced as part of the recoinage of William III in 1696 in an attempt to limit the clipping and melting of sterling silver coinage, it being reasoned that there would be less incentive to melt sterling silver when a higher standard was used for ‘wrought plate’. In 1697 Britannia silver became the obligatory standard for items of plate’ and the lion passant guardant hallmark was replaced with ‘the figure of a woman commonly called Britannia’. Sterling silver was approved again for use by silversmiths in 1720 with Britannia silver remaining optional. You can buy this bullion silver online via Royal Mint UK website starting from £22.50.Source: Royal Mint UK
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