Thursday 1 March 2018

Nessie to Feature on British Coinage




The Loch Ness Monster will feature on the British 10p coin as part of an A-Z series of British icons. This dovetails nicely with my other hobby of coin collecting, though I assume this coin will appear in general circulation. The image looks a bit better than the usual cultural representations, though I am pretty sure Nessie never smiles! Urquhart Castle appears in the background so you don't confuse Nessie with Mhorag or Lizzie.

This is from the Royal Mint website - where you can pick up a silver proof version for a mere £35:

The elusive Loch Ness Monster is next on our list, A highland sighting that’s not to be missed!

Nothing gets the mind wondering as much as traditional British folklore. And the top of all the mythical beasts is the Loch Ness Monster. 

Reportedly a huge monster which mauls and drags its prey to the depths of Loch Ness, it has been described by the lucky few to set eyes on it as ‘the nearest approach to a dragon I have ever seen in my life’. 

It was during the 17th century that Britons really took an interest in Nessy. In 1871 D. Mackenzie spotted an object, similar to a log or an upturned boat “wriggling and churning up the water”. After this story was passed to Rupert Gould, interest in the Loch Ness Monster increased.

I spotted four mistakes in this short description, I will leave it as an exercise to readers to spot them.


The author can be contacted at lochnesskelpie@gmail.com




6 comments:

  1. I'd love one of those. Will/can you make some available to foreigners? Here is the US we have different 25 cent coins that depict one of the 50 states on the back, so I realize it is not always easy to get these coins. But if you came across any extras...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can find one in my loose change and post it to you.

      Delete
    2. I would love that. I'd trade you a New York back quarter, but it features the Statue of Liberty, not Champ...

      Delete
    3. Okay, I'll email you when I get a few in my hand.

      Delete
  2. Replies
    1. No sign yet of these coins, they should be in general circulation now. I think 100,000 of the Nessie coins were produced, so maybe 10,000 will find their way to Scotland for 7,000,000 people to fight over. :)

      Delete