The Royal Mint has today unveiled a giant portrait of Her Majesty The Queen made entirely out of coins. Working in partnership with Welsh artist Nathan Wyburn, The Royal Mint commissioned the piece in celebration of the Platinum Jubilee.
Taking over four days to complete, Nathan helped create the 3m x 3m masterpiece using over 5000 coins including a mixture of £5, £1, 50p, 5p, 2p and 1p coins. Employees at The Royal Mint were given the opportunity to lay coins to mark their time working at the site in Llantrisant during this historic occasion.
Using the current official effigy of The Queen as inspiration, Nathan created the bespoke artwork sculpting Her Majesty’s features using a mosaic technique using the two metallic tones in the coins to highlight her features. The crown also features some special edition colour-printed coins which feature as the crown jewels.
The coin art will sit in the entrance foyer at The Royal Mint Experience, where visitors can search for their favourite coins within the design, such as the 100 years of Girlguiding, Elton John and British Red Cross.
Speaking about the collaboration, Nathan Wyburn said, “This is my first time creating a portrait with coins, and it was a very special experience to handle them in such a large quantity as you are only used to seeing them in your wallet. The portrait of The Queen is iconic, and I’ve loved working with The Royal Mint to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee in such a fun way.
Anne Jessopp, Chief Executive of The Royal Mint, said: “The Platinum Jubilee is a once in a lifetime event and this unique work of art celebrates Her Majesty by featuring an array of coins from her reign. The portrait is available for the public to view at our visitor’s centre, where it will serve as a permanent celebration of this historic milestone and The Royal Mint employees who helped to create it.”
Earlier this year, The Royal Mint unveiled a brand-new exhibition commemorating Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and displays a number of unique artefacts to the public for the first time, including a selection of Jubilee medals, Jubilee commemorative coins, sovereigns, and the original artwork and sketches behind the 2022 Platinum Jubilee coin issued this year.
