A Legendary New Coin – The Maid Marian £5

By Kate | February 28, 2024

They say behind every great man is a great woman…and that’s true for the Myths and Legends series, as the Robin Hood £5 is followed by the 2024 Maid Marian £5!

A striking design

The reverse design, by Jody Clark, shows the heroine framed amongst the foliage of Sherwood Forest, with native English foliage including oak leaves and ferns encroaching from the edge of the coin. Marian was known to be a skilful archer, and so she’s pictured with her bow and arrow upon her back.

When talking about his design on the Maid Marian £5, Jody Clark said ‘I wanted to show the connections between each legendary outlaw’s persona and the forest, which serves as both a sanctuary and a strategic ally’.

2024 UK Maid Marian £5 Reverse and Obverse

To highlight the dynamic design, your 2024 UK Maid Marian £5 has been struck to a Brilliant Uncirculated quality – the standard favoured among collectors.

Who is Maid Marian?

Maid Marian didn’t actually feature in any early, medieval versions of the Robin Hood legend, but began to appear in plays and stories in the 1600s. However, despite being a late-comer to the story, Marian has become a very important part of the Robin Hood legend.

Illustration of Maid Marian from Wood 401(21)
Credit: Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Known as Robin Hood’s one true love, English folklore depicts Maid Marian as courageous and independent as well as beautiful and loyal. It’s thought that her name was derived from her refusal to marry until Robin Hood and his merry men had received a King’s pardon, as before the 17th century, unmarried women were called maids.

Maid Marian has been portrayed in countless plays, movies, TV shows and other media, usually in human form, but some of you may remember Marian best as Hood’s foxy love interest in the 1973 Disney film ‘Robin Hood’.

Previously in the Myths and Legends series…

The 2024 Maid Marian £5 coin follows on from the Robin Hood £5, however the first three coins in the series focused on Arthurian Legends. The series kicked off with King Arthur, followed by mythical wizard Merlin and the Arthurian Legends collection concluded with shapeshifter and witch, Morgan Le Fay.