King Charles signs off on historic first for key royal to mark 'remarkable service'
Princess Anne has been honoured ahead of her 75th birthday with a commemorative coin released by the Royal Mint to celebrate her "remarkable lifetime of service" to the Firm. The first ever official UK coin to honour the Princess Royal has been dubbed the "Anne-iversary £5 coin", and has been personally approved by the Princess.
The coin features a portrait of King Charles ' sister wearing the Aquamarine Pineflower Tiara with her hair swept up in her signature style. The design is framed with the inscription 'The Princess Royal – Celebrating 75 Years – Duty and Devotion' in tribute to Anne's unwavering dedication to her royal duties over the decades.
Often known as the hardest working member of the royal family, Anne will celebrate her 75th birthday on August 15, and has requested that her milestone birthday only be publicly marked by a charity forum she hosted at Buckingham Palace in June.
Rebecca Morgan, director of commemorative coin at the Royal Mint, said: 'For the first time in British numismatic history, we are honoured to celebrate the Princess Royal on an official UK coin.
'Her Royal Highness's unwavering commitment to public service, charitable work, and support of His Majesty's armed forces over seven and a half decades makes her truly deserving of this tribute.'
To the right of the princess's portrait is a depiction of her official coat of arms, and on the obverse is the King, who gave the creation its final sign-off in honour of his sister.
The portrait of Anne's head is based on a photograph of the princess taken by John Swannell, a Royal Photographic Society fellow, and shows her staring directly at the camera.
The designer of the commemorative coin Thomas T Docherty said the portrait reflected the princess's 'strength of character' and 'understated elegance', as he said: 'I wanted to capture Her Royal Highness's remarkable legacy and dedication to public service. The portrait reflects her strength of character and unwavering commitment to duty.'
He added: 'It was really by observing Princess Anne and looking at the role she plays within not only her family but the nation and the Commonwealth that formed inspiration for the design of the coin. She has, I would say, a kind of understated elegance and strength.'
The art deco-style diamond and aquamarine Cartier tiara Anne is wearing was a wedding anniversary present from King George VI to his wife Queen Elizabeth, later the Queen Mother, who went on to give it as a wedding gift to her granddaughter Anne in 1973.
The princess is also wearing an aquamarine pendant and matching earrings, both believed to have been made using stones from the tiara when Anne had it remodelled in the 1990s.
The commemorative coin is available to purchase from the Royal Mint's website on July 18, costing £17.50 for the brilliant uncirculated edition. Other versions of the £5 coin are also available, with a silver proof priced at £110, a silver proof piedfort costing £208, and gold proof for £4,110.
In recent years, The Royal Mint has honoured several notable royal birthdays with commemorative UK coins, including Queen Elizabeth II's 95th birthday, King Charles III's 70th and 75th birthdays as well as Prince William's 40th birthday.
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