1 oz Tudor Beasts The Bull of Clarence Gold Coin | Proof | 2023
The Royal Tudor Beasts collection is back with its latest design: the Bull of Clarence. Let us tell you a little more about the history behind the coin and the two new designs on both side of this 1 oz gold coin proof 2023.
The history behind the Beasts
Cardinal Thomas Wolsey originally built Hampton Court Palace, the home of the King’s Beasts. Following Wolsey’s fall from grace, Henry VIII claimed the palace as his own. Because he wanted to leave his mark on history, he replaced the wooden bridge that crossed the moat with a crossing with bricks and more than 600 tonnes of stone. It was also decided that the new Moat Bridge would display the lineage of Henry VIII through a group of stone statues called the King’s Beasts, designed to impress people entering the court.
The Royal Mint’s Royal tudor beasts collection has reimagined these mighty and mythical creatures and has put them on coins.
The artist behind the design of the reverse
Artist David Lawrence took his inspiration from the statues but chose not to recreate them but opted for a balance of hearlaic style with dynamism of the animals themselves. For the story David Lawrence worked entirely by hand, perfecting his design with his pencils.
The design itself
The Bull of Clarence is the fourth coin in the collection( after the Lion of England, the Yale of Beaufort and the Seymour Panther) and symbolises strength, power and wealth. The Bull of Clarence is a mighty, formidable beast and a heraldic symbol affiliated with the rise of the House of York during the 15th century.
The design from David Lawrence depicts the bull holding a shield with the Tudor Rose. The tudor Rose signifies the marriage between Henry VII and Elizabeth of York, uniting the House of Lancaster and the House of York. The inscriptions here are only Bull of Clarence and the year of mintage 2023.
New portrait of King Charles III
Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022, her son Charles as heir to the crown became King. His portrait is the work of the artist Martin Jennings. Martin Jennings is best known for his public sculptures which include the poet John Betjeman, in St Pancras Station in London, and Philip Larkin in Hull. He used photographs to come up with the design, rather than the King sitting for a specific portrait.His Majesty had his left-profile bust elegantly designed, unlike the Queen’s effigy, which used to be of her right-profile. The tradition for British monarchs to face a different direction to their predecessor dates back to the seventeenth century.
It should be noted that Charles has decided to be represented without any crown, maybe to portray a more accessible human King to his subjects.
The legend reads “Charles” and 'D G REX FD' ('Dei Gratia Rex Fidei Defensor' -(Charles III by Grace of God King, Defender of the Faith”), the face value 100 pounds and the year of mintage 2023.
The coin contains one ounce of 9999.9 fine gold and is struck to the Royal Mint’s finest proof standard. As there is a limited mintage of only 300 coins, do not wait and secure your copy today on StoneX Bullion especially if you have already purchased the other 3 coins of the Tudor Beasts collection!