Elizabeth II, £2 (50th Anniversary United Nations) 1995 Silver Proof

In 1986 the Royal Mint issued its first-ever non-Gold Two Pound Piece. It was a commemorative for the Commonwealth Games which were held in Edinburgh, Scotland. It has a Scottish Thistle in the middle of the Scottish flag, with the cross of St. Andrew. The obverse has the so-called Maklouf portrait of the Queen. They were struck in base metal for general circulation and in Proof Sterling Silver for collectors. Today these coins are getting more and more difficult to find. It is the first non-Gold Two Pound piece and a commemorative.

In 2002, Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 50th or Golden Jubilee as our Queen. The Royal Mint issued a special commemorative £5 to honour the event. In many ways it is similar to the Coronation Crown of 1953, as the Queen is riding her horse. The obverse is the Queen with her crown and a most striking portrait it is. They are in Uncirculated condition and now, 20 years later, following the passing of our longest reigning monarch, they are one of the most sought after coins of her reign.

Many collectors don’t realize that many of the 1953 Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Crowns were issued in a black plastic case. It is unusual today to see these coins in those cases; in fact, we would say that the cases are rarer than the crowns. Well as luck would have it, we bought from a coin dealer who is retiring, 100 pieces of the 1953 Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Crown in Brilliant Uncirculated condition in the original black plastic cases they were issued in. We have seen just normal examples offered for as high as £29.50 in the National Press. So we think our price in the original cases is quite a good price. Supplies are limited and once they are gone, we wouldn’t know where to find any more.