One year after her death on September 8, 2022, the late Queen Elizabeth II is still finding ways to contribute to breaking world records and making history. An ultra-rare coin has been unveiled in honour of her passing, and it carries with it staggering detail. Made from eight pounds of gold and including over 6000 diamonds, the coin’s incredible estimated value easily breaks a world record.
- A new commemorative coin has been unveiled to mark the first anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s death
- The rare coin is made from almost eight pounds of gold with over 6000 diamonds -collectively, the two-billion-year-old stones weigh over 475 carats
- In other royal news, Princess of Wales’ low-key tribute to Queen Elizabeth during anniversary visit to Wales is so sentimental
Throughout her historic 70 years on the throne, Queen Elizabeth didn’t just live through history, she made it – and despite the nation commemorating the first anniversary of her death on Friday, she’s still doing exactly that.
Luxury legacy brand, East India Company, unveiled a commemorative coin to mark one year since Her Majesty’s passing.
The elaborate piece, dubbed The Crown, comprises almost a dozen separate 24 carat coins, nestled in thousands of diamonds.
The centre coin alone weighs over two pounds, while the smaller ones that surround it each weigh one ounce and feature either portraits of the late monarch or depictions of Her Majesty’s well-known virtues – including truth, justice and courage.
On the reverse side of the coin, is a depiction of the flag of the United Kingdom made of diamonds.
The estimated value of the coin has been set at a staggering $23M (£18.4M).
If the coin was to be sold at this price, it would easily make history as the most expensive in world history, easily surpassing the previous record held by a rare 1933 US Double Eagle that sold for $18.9M (£15.1M) at Sotheby’s New York in June 2021.
We spoke with luxury jewellery experts, Steven Stone, to analyse the coin further. They said, “Comprised of almost a dozen 24-carat gold coins nestled in beds of diamonds, this coin is a truly spectacular piece. With a diameter of over 9.6 inches…the coin reportedly took over one year to produce and it’s easy to see why as the level of detail is astronomical.”
“For example, the coins around the centre coin all feature either portraits of the late monarch… The touching details don’t end there either and on the other side of the coin, thousands of diamonds have been arranged to resemble the UK’s flag.”
The East India Company coin in numbers
- It used 6426 diamonds
- Collectively, the two-billion-year-old stones weigh over 475 carats
- It took 83 people to create it
- Involving 8 different countries
- With 3.61Kgs of gold.
The East India Company has a connection to the very first Queen Elizabeth. Dating back to 1600, Queen Elizabeth I bestowed it with her royal patronage, allowing it to trade exclusively in spices, tea, coffee and other luxury goods from the East.
It operated for almost 300 years before being dissolved in 1874. In 2005, Indian-born businessman Sanjiv Mehta acquired the rights to the name, before relaunching it as a lifestyle brand in 2010.
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