blog di Patrizio Radaelli: Coins of England and Great BritainDecimal Fifty Pence

Decimal Fifty Pence

In 1971 British money was Decimalized and that's when the first Fifty Pence piece was first issued. However to help people become used to the new currency some coinage was issued early to gradually help people get used to the new money.
In 1969 the Fifty Pence was issued to circulate early alongside its equivalent the Ten Shilling note.
The New Fifty Pence weighed 13.5 grams. The coin was the first seven sided (heptagonal) coin in Britain, the reason for this is to make it easier to identify. The edges are also rounded to make sure that the distance across the coin is a constant 30 millimetres so that vending machines will accept them. There have been so far six different types of Fifty Pence struck and on top of that there are also many Commemorative issues.

1) New Fifty Pence Type
From 1969 to 1981 excluding 1973.
OBVERSE - Right facing portrait of a young Elizabeth II designed by Arnold Machin and the inscription "ELIZABETH·II D·G·REG·F·D" followed by the date.
REVERSE - Britannia seated with a Trident in her left hand and an Olive branch in her right, having to her side a Shield with the Union Flag and wearing a crested Roman helmet. Britannia is also accompanied by a Lion which is also looking to the right. The numeric value is stated below Britannia with the number 50 beneath it and the inscription "NEW PENCE". Designed by Christopher Ironside.

2) Type 2
From 1982 to 1984.
It is identical to the first type in every way except for the reverse inscription which now reads "FIFTY PENCE".

3) Middle aged Head Large Type
From 1985 to 1997 excluding 1994.
OBVERSE - Right facing portrait of a little older Elizabeth II redesigned by Raphael Maklouf.
The inscription was kept the same but its placing on the coin had changed, originally "ELIZABETH II" ran from the top right of the coin down to the bottom right and "D·G·REG·F·D·(date)" ran from the bottom left of the coin up to the top left; in the new design the obverse inscriptions swap places.

4) Middle aged Head Small Type
Only struck in 1997.
It was essentially the same as type three, but the size and weight of the coin had been significantly reduced to accommodate for the rising cost of metals. The coin had been reduced to 27.3 millimetres and 8.0 grams.