Canada Coins 25 Cents 2013 60th anniversary of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II
The year 2013 marks the 60th anniversary of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.
This stunning coin is part of the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation 60th Anniversary Program, issued by several different countries of the Commonwealth, celebrating Queen Elizabeth II's 60 years on the British throne!Obverse: Susanna Blunt’s design of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
Reverse: This coloured cupronickel coin captures the spirit of Canadian artist Phil Richards’ 2012 official portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, in celebration of Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee. The color scene features a detail of Canadian artist Phil Richards’ 2012 official acrylic on canvas portrait of Queen Elizabeth II in celebration of Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee. This original work of art depicts Elizabeth standing in front of the longest reigning monarch in British history, Queen Victoria. The reverse also features the engraved word “CANADA,” the date “2013” and the face value of “25 CENTS.”
Mintage: 15000.
Composition: cupronickel.
Finish: specimen with colour.
Diameter: 35 mm.
Edge: plain.
Face value: 25 Cents.
Artist: Diamond Jubilee Portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Phil Richards (reverse), Susanna Blunt (obverse).
Manufacturer: Royal Canadian Mint.
This coin is an artful addition to any collection—or a perfect gift for enthusiasts of all things royal.
Toronto-based artist Phil Richards learned in 2010 that he had been selected by Queen Elizabeth herself from five Canadian artists to paint an official portrait of Her Majesty. Two years and hundreds of hours of intensive work later, Richards accompanied Canada’s Governor General and Prime Minister to England to unveil the portrait in the presence of Her Majesty at Buckingham Palace during the 2012 Diamond Jubilee week.
The final framed acrylic-on-canvas portrait measures 328 by 224 centimeters. The basswood frame is gilded in 23-karat gold leaf. The symbolically rich composition centers on the Queen, elegantly dressed in white, standing at a desk in front of an arched doorway in Ottawa’s Rideau Hall. In her right hand, Her Majesty holds a pair of satin gloves. She wears a diamond tiara and the badges of her Canadian honors, as well as sparkling diamond jewelery. In the background is a portrait-within-a-portrait of Her Majesty’s great-great-grandmother, Queen Victoria, who signed the British North America Act that became the Canadian Constitution in 1982 during Elizabeth II’s reign. In the portrait, the British North America Act lays against two ink pots from the Victorian era.
The Queen’s left hand, which rests on the desk, points to the Act. In addition to the images of Queen Victoria and the British North America Act, Richards was required by the Government of Canada to include a Canadian flag. He added other symbolic elements as well, such as a vase featuring Her Majesty’s Canadian Diamond Jubilee emblem, a pink Queen Elizabeth rose, and six lights representing each decade of the Queen’s reign. Richards even secretly included two corgis in the carved finial at the top of the chair on Her Majesty’s left side - a secret detail that delighted the Queen when she saw the final piece!