Front Design:
Bottom section of the Royal Shield of Arms, by Matthew Dent.
Obverse Design(s):
Queen Elizabeth II portrait by Ian Rank-Broadley. 4th Portrait 2008-2015, 5th Portrait 2015-2018.
More about the Royal Shield 50p:
This 50p coin design was part of a winning competition entry by Matthew Dent from Bangor in Wales. Six designs from the 1p through to the 50p coin can be pieced together to form a complete image of the Royal Shield of Arms.
The Royal Shield is the second most common 50p in circulation, only outnumbered by the Britannia which it replaced in 2008.
Royal Shield Mintage by Year:
2008 – 22.8m
2012 – 32.4m
2013 – 10.4m
2014 – 49m
2015 – 4th Portrait – 21m
2015 – 5th Portrait – 39.3m
2017 – 1.8m Extremely Rare (same mintage issue as Sir Isaac Newton).
2019 – 122m
2020 – 46.6m
2021 – NIL Issue