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Production of the first circulating British coins featuring an image of King Charles III began at the Royal Mint facilities in Wales on Thursday local time.
- The first King Charles coin is a memorial 50 pence honouring Queen Elizabeth II
- The coin was created by British sculptor Martin Jennings
- There are about 27 billion coins with Queen Elizabeth's portrait on them
The first coin bearing a portrait of King Charles is a memorial 50 pence honouring Queen Elizabeth II, which will go into public circulation in December.
"Right now there's demand for 50 pences, which means that we can strike this memorial 50p and put it into circulation for December," Rebecca Morgan, director of Collector Services at the Royal Mint said.
"The 50p that we're striking right now that has King Charles III's effigy on the obverse, on the front, and on the reverse is a memorial sign for Queen Elizabeth II, a really poignant design.
"It was the same design used on her 1953 coronation crown when she was coronated 70 years ago."
The King Charles image on the coin was created by British sculptor Martin Jennings.
In keeping with tradition, the portrait of Charles faces in the opposite direction of that of his mother.
Since the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 after 11 years of republican rule under Oliver Cromwell and his son, it has become traditional for the monarch to face in the opposite direction to their predecessor on coins.
Charles personally approved the official portrait, which shows him facing to the left.
The image is surrounded by a Latin inscription which translates as "King Charles III, by the Grace of God, Defender of the Faith".
"You're trying to put across something that will hold its own across the years that it's used," Mr Jennings said.
"It has to have dignity and seriousness, but it also has to have the warmth that comes across.
"This is, after all, a portrait of a person. And it is King Charles, but it is also the man."
Queen Elizabeth died on September 8 aged 96 after 70 years on the throne.
About 27 billion coins with her image are in circulation and will remain legal tender as they are gradually phased out over time.
"Probably next year you'll start to see some other denominations, like I said, in line with demand, but coins last for around 20 years — you'll be seeing Queen Elizabeth on coins for quite a while yet," Ms Morgan said.
Reuters