Ten pence
United Kingdom
Value£0.10
Mass(1968–1992) 11.31 g
(1992–present) 6.5 g
Diameter(1968–1992) 28.5 mm
(1992–present) 24.5 mm
Thickness(Cupro-nickel) 1.85 mm
(Steel) 2.05 mm
EdgeMilled
CompositionCupro-nickel (1971–2010)
Nickel-plated steel (2011–)
Years of minting1968–present
Obverse
DesignQueen Elizabeth II
DesignerJody Clark
Design date2015
Reverse
DesignSegment of the Royal Shield
DesignerMatthew Dent
Design date2008

The British decimal ten pence coin (often shortened to 10p in writing and speech) is a denomination of sterling coinage worth 1⁄10 of a pound. Its obverse has featured the profile of Queen Elizabeth II since the coin's introduction in 1968, to replace the florin (two shilling) coin in preparation for decimalisation in 1971.[1] It remained the same size as the florin coin (which also remained legal tender) until a smaller version was introduced 30 September 1992, with the older coins being withdrawn on 30 June 1993.[2] Four different portraits of the Queen have been used on the coin; the latest design by Jody Clark was introduced in 2015. The second and current reverse, featuring a segment of the Royal Shield, was introduced in 2008.

The ten pence coin was originally minted from cupro-nickel (75% Cu, 25% Ni), but since 2012 it has been minted in nickel-plated steel due to the increasing price of metal. From January 2013 the Royal Mint began a programme to gradually remove the previous cupro-nickel coins from circulation and replace them with the nickel-plated steel versions.[3]

As of March 2014, there were an estimated 1,631 million 10p coins in circulation, with an estimated face value of £163.08 million.[4]

10p coins are legal tender for amounts up to the sum of £5 when offered in repayment of a debt; however, the coin's legal tender status is not normally relevant for everyday transactions.

Design

Obverse

To date, four different obverses have been used. In all cases, the inscription until 2015 was ELIZABETH II D.G.REG.F.D.,[5] followed by the year of minting. In the original design both sides of the coin are encircled by dots, a common feature on coins, known as beading.

As with all new decimal currency, until 1984 the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Arnold Machin appeared on the obverse,[6] in which the Queen wears the 'Girls of Great Britain and Ireland' Tiara.

Between 1985 and 1997 the portrait by Raphael Maklouf was used,[6] in which the Queen wears the George IV State Diadem.

On 30 September 1992 a reduced-size version of the 10 pence coin was introduced. The older and larger version of the coin was withdrawn from circulation on 30 June 1993. The design remained unchanged.

From 1998 to 2015 the portrait by Ian Rank-Broadley was used,[6] again featuring the tiara, with a signature-mark IRB below the portrait.

As of June 2015, coins bearing the portrait by Jody Clark have been seen in circulation.

Reverse

Reverse: 1982–2008

Original Reverse Design

The original reverse of the coin, designed by Christopher Ironside, and used from 1968 to 2008, is a crowned lion (formally, Part of the crest of England, a lion passant guardant royally crowned), with the numeral "10" below the lion, and either NEW PENCE (1968–1981) or TEN PENCE (1982–2008) above the lion.

Royal Shield Design

In August 2005 the Royal Mint launched a competition to find new reverse designs for all circulating coins apart from the £2 coin.[7] The winner, announced in April 2008, was Matthew Dent, whose designs were gradually introduced into the circulating British coinage from mid-2008.[8] The designs for the 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p and 50p coins depict sections of the Royal Shield that form the whole shield when placed together. The shield in its entirety was featured on the now-obsolete round £1 coin. The 10p coin depicts part of the first quarter of the shield, showing two of the lions passant from the Royal Banner of England, with the words TEN PENCE above the shield design. The coin's obverse remains largely unchanged, but the beading (the ring of dots around the coin's circumference), which no longer features on the coin's reverse, has also been removed from the obverse.

A to Z Design (Great British Coin Hunt)

In March 2018, new designs were released, one for each of the 26 letters of the alphabet. Anne Jessopp, chief executive of the Royal Mint, described the designs as "iconic themes that are quintessentially British". The A to Z coins were confirmed to have individual mintage figures of 220,000 on 14 October 2019 - a total of 5,720,000 for all 26.[9][10]

King Charles III definitive design

In October 2023 the King Charles III ten-pence coin was presented; the coin features a capercaillie. [11][12]

Mintages

Number of ten pence coins minted for circulation by year[13]
Year Number minted Composition Diameter (mm) Portrait Reverse
1968336,143,250Cupro-nickel28.5MachinIronside
1969314,008,000
1970133,571,000
197163,205,000
19720
1973152,174,000
197492,741,000
1975181,559,000
1976228,220,000
197759,323,000
19780
1979115,457,000
198088,650,000
19813,487,000
19820
19830
19840
19850Maklouf
19860
19870
19880
19890
19900
19910
19921,413,455,17024.5
19930
19940
199543,259,000
1996118,738,000
199799,196,000
19980Rank-Broadley
19990
2000134,733,000
2001129,281,000
200280,934,000
200388,118,000
200499,602,000
200569,604,000
2006118,803,000
200772,720,000
20089,720,000
200871,447,000Dent
200984,360,000
201096,600,500
201159,603,850Nickel-plated steel
201211,600,030
2013320,200,750
2014490,202,020
2015119,000,000
91,900,000 Clark
2016135,380,000
201733,300,000
20180Dent
5,720,000 A to Z
20190Dent
2,100,000 A to Z
202045,347,846Dent
202171,200,000
202238,000,000
Number of ten pence "A to Z" design coins minted for circulation by year[13]
Year Letter Description Number minted
2018AAngel of the North220,000
BBond..James Bond220,000
CCricket220,000
DDouble Decker Bus220,000
EEnglish Breakfast220,000
FFish and Chips220,000
GGreenwich Mean Time220,000
HHouses of Parliament220,000
IIce Cream Cone220,000
JJubilee220,000
KKing Arthur220,000
LLoch Ness Monster220,000
MMackintosh220,000
NNHS220,000
OOak Tree220,000
PPostbox220,000
QQueuing220,000
RRobin220,000
SStonehenge220,000
TTea220,000
UUnion Flag220,000
VVillages220,000
WWorld Wide Web220,000
XX Marks The Spot220,000
YYeoman Warder220,000
ZZebra Crossing220,000
2019AAngel of the North84,000
BBond..James Bond84,000
CCricket84,000
DDouble Decker Bus84,000
EEnglish Breakfast84,000
FFish and Chips84,000
GGreenwich Mean Time84,000
HHouses of Parliament84,000
IIce Cream Cone84,000
JJubilee84,000
KKing Arthur84,000
LLoch Ness Monster84,000
MMackintosh84,000
NNHS84,000
OOak Tree84,000
PPostbox84,000
QQueuing83,000
RRobin64,000
SStonehenge84,000
TTea84,000
UUnion Flag84,000
VVillages84,000
WWorld Wide Web63,000
XX Marks The Spot84,000
YYeoman Warder63,000
ZZebra Crossing63,000

Mint Sets have been produced since 1982; where mintages on or after that date indicate 'none', there are examples contained within those sets.

References

  1. ↑ Bignell, C P. "Post decimalisation". Retrieved 2006-05-23.
  2. ↑ Stephen Eckett; Craig Pearce (2008). Harriman's Money Miscellany: A Collection of Financial Facts and Corporate Curiosities. Harriman House Limited. p. 19. ISBN 978-1-905641-95-6.
  3. ↑ "Cupro Nickel Replacement Programme". Royal Mint. 2013.
  4. ↑ "Mintage Figures". Royal Mint. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  5. ↑ Clayton, Tony. "Decimal Coins of the UK – Bronze". Retrieved 2006-05-24.
  6. 1 2 3 "1p Coin". British Royal Mint. Archived from the original on 2006-04-27. Retrieved 2006-05-23.
  7. ↑ "Royal Mint seeks new coin designs", BBC News, 17 August 2005
  8. ↑ "Royal Mint unveils new UK coins" Archived 2009-03-07 at the Wayback Machine, 2 April 2008
  9. ↑ "Silver A to Z Coins - Great British Coin Hunt by The Royal Mint". www.royalmint.com. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
  10. ↑ "Ten Pence mintage figures (10p) by The Royal Mint". www.royalmint.com. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  11. ↑ BBC
  12. ↑ The Royal Mint
  13. 1 2 "10p Ten Pence Mintage Figures". www.royalmint.com. Retrieved 2023-09-02.
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