NationMaster - Encyclopedia: British twenty pence coin

The British decimal Twenty Pence (20p) coin was issued in June 1982 to fill in the obvious gap between the Ten Pence and Fifty Pence coins; it rapidly gained acceptance and very large numbers now circulate [1]. UK 20 pence coin reverse File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The British decimal Ten Pence (10p) coin was issued in 1968 in preparation for the forthcoming decimalisation of the coinage. ... The British decimal fifty pence (50p) coin was issued in October 1969 in the run_up to decimalisation to replace the ten shilling note. ...

The coin is minted from an alloy of 84% copper and 16% nickel (unlike the other 'silver' coins which are 75% copper, 25% nickel), weighs 5.00 grams and has a diameter of 21.4 millimetres. Like the fifty pence piece, the coin is not circular, but seven-sided to aid identification. The sides are not straight but are curved so that the centre of curvature is the opposite apex of the coin – this is an equilateral curve (a curve of constant width) which allows the coin to roll freely in slot machines. General Name, Symbol, Number copper, Cu, 29 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 4, d Appearance metallic brown Atomic mass 63. ... General Name, Symbol, Number nickel, Ni, 28 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 10, 4, d Appearance lustrous, metallic Atomic mass 58. ... A heptagon is a plane figure with seven sides and seven angles. ... The Reuleaux triangle is a constant width curve based on an equilateral triangle. ... For closed convex planar bodies whose boundary is a smooth curve, one notes that there are exactly two parallel tangent lines to the boundary curve in any given direction. ...

The reverse of the coin, designed by William Gardner, is a crowned Tudor Rose, with the numeral "20" below the rose, the year, and TWENTY PENCE above the rose. Uniquely in modern British coinage, the inscriptions are mostly incuse; i.e. the lettering is punched into the coin rather than standing proud of it. Also, differing from other British coinage (bar the much newerly-issued £2 coin), the year of mintage is displayed on the tail (i.e. the opposite to the Queen's head) of the coin. When Henry Tudor took the crown of England from Richard III in battle, he brought about the end of the Wars of the Roses between the House of Lancaster (Red Rose) and the House of York (White Rose). ...

During the history of the coin so far, three different obverses have been used: between 1982 and 1984 the head of Queen Elizabeth II by Arnold Machin; between 1985 and 1997 the head by Raphael Maklouf; and since 1998 the head by Ian Rank-Broadley. In all cases, the inscription is ELIZABETH II D.G.REG.F.D. Queen Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor), born 21 April 1926, is the Queen regnant of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Antigua and... Arnold Machin (30 September 1911 _ 9 March 1999) was a British artist, sculptor, coin and stamp designer. ... Raphael Maklouf (born 10 December 1937) is a sculptor, best known for designing the effigy of Queen Elizabeth used on Commonwealth coinage from 1985 to 1997. ... Ian Rank-Broadley (born 1952) is a British sculptor who has produced many acclaimed works, among which are several designs for British coinage. ... This article concerns British coinage, the coinage of the United Kingdom. ...

Manx coin

The Isle of Man twenty pence coin is the same size, shape and colour as the UK coin, depicting Rushen Abbey on the reverse. Despite the ISLE OF MAN inscription on the obverse, it is easily mistaken for a commemorative issue of the standard UK coin and is occasionally seen in circulation in the UK. The British Crown Dependency of the Isle of Man has its own currency, the Isle of Man pound, which is linked to the Pound Sterling. ... Rushen Abbey was a Cistercian abbey on the Isle of Man, located between Castletown and Ballasalla. ...

External links

Category: British coinage This article concerns British coinage, the coinage of the United Kingdom. ... 1980 coin featuring portrait by Arnold Machin 1993 coin featuring portrait by Raphael Maklouf 2000 coin featuring portrait by Ian Rank-Broadley The British decimal Penny (1p) coin, produced by the Royal Mint, was issued on 15 February 1971, the day the British currency was decimalised. ... This article discusses the British decimal two pence coin, issued from 1971, only. ... The British decimal Five Pence (5p) coin was issued in 1968 in preparation for the forthcoming decimalisation of the coinage. ... The British decimal Ten Pence (10p) coin was issued in 1968 in preparation for the forthcoming decimalisation of the coinage. ... The British decimal fifty pence (50p) coin was issued on October 14, 1969 in the run-up to decimalisation to replace the ten shilling note. ... This article discusses the British One Pound circulating coin issued since 1983, only. ... This article discusses the the commemorative British Two Pounds coins issued issued between 1986 and 1996, and the regular bimetallic circulation coins first issued in 1998 (dated 1997). ... Half new penny, 1982 The British decimal Half Penny (Â½p) or Hapenny (pronounced HAY-pnee) coin was first issued on 15 February 1971, the day the British currency was decimalised. ... The commemorative British decimal Twenty-Five Pence (25p) coin was issued in four designs between 1972 and 1981. ... This article discusses the commemorative British Five Pounds crown-sized coin issued since 1990, only. ...