Australia’s New King Charles III Coin Effigy Revealed!

More than a year after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, The Royal Australian Mint have officially announced the release of their first coins featuring King Charles III.

For the first time in 70 years, and after more than 15.5 billion coins were minted with the face of the late Queen, the Australian $1 coin will feature an effigy of the King.

Official Commonwealth effigy of King Charles III 
Credit: AAP
Official Commonwealth effigy of King Charles III
Credit: AAP

The King’s image

The King’s image that features on these brand new $1 coins will be the official Commonwealth effigy, available for use by all British Commonwealth countries. As with all official portraits of reigning monarchs, the new effigy has been personally approved by King Charles III.  

As with our UK coins, this new Australian $1 coin sees the monarch facing the opposite direction to his predecessor, Queen Elizabeth II.

Australian QEII Coin Effigies 
Credit: The Perth Mint
Australian QEII Coin Effigies
Credit: The Perth Mint

A major change for Australian Coinage

During her reign, six effigies of Queen Elizabeth II have featured on Australian coinage, however the latest change was only 5 years ago. From 1998 to 2018, with the exception of 2000, it was Ian Rank-Broadley’s effigy that featured on Australian coinage.

In 2018, a new effigy of the Queen by Jody Clark was approved and made it’s way onto Australian coins in 2019.

2019 Ian Rank-Broadley QEII Effigy on Australian £1

Considering that the Queen Elizabeth effigy only changed fairly recently, the introduction of King Charles III is sure to cause a huge shake up in Australian coinage.

How many will enter circulation?

The final mintage figure of the 2023 Australia $1 is yet to be confirmed, however, The Royal Australian Mint have announced that an estimated 10 million will be circulating by Christmas.  

Most Australians will never have held a circulating coin featuring a King on the obverse, so this new issue is guaranteed to attract the attention of not only collectors, but anyone who regularly uses coinage.

The $1 is the only denomination to feature His Majesty at the moment, however The Royal Australian Mint have said that the $2, $5, 10 cent, 20 cent and 50 cent coins will be released gradually next year.

When will we see the King on UK coinage?

Although we’ve already seen the King’s effigy on commemorative UK 50p, £2 and £5 coins since the Queen Elizabeth II Memoriam coin range last year, it’s just been announced that all UK coins are set to change. As the full range of circulating coins from the 1p to the £2 will not only feature the King, but are also set to receive brand new reverse designs.

As perhaps the biggest change we’ve seen to UK coinage in decades, we’re expecting a huge collecting rush for the New UK Coinage for King Charles III and can’t wait to see the new coins when they’re released. 

Keep an eye on our social media and website as we’ll be updating you as soon as we have more information on these exciting new coins. 

Your guide to collecting King Charles III coins

Since the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022, there’s been a huge shake up in the numismatic world. Not only have collectors been rushing to secure the very last coins featuring the late Queen, but wanting to be the first to own new coins bearing King Charles III’s effigy.

Here are some tips to guide you in building your King Charles III coin collection.

1. Use cash

It may seem obvious, but the best way to increase your chances of finding a King Charles coin in your change is to use cash. And where possible, ask for your change to be given in the denominations you’re interested in.

UK coins
UK coins

For example, if you’re looking for the Queen Elizabeth Memorial 50p, which is the first coin to enter circulation featuring the King on the obverse, ask for your change in 50ps.

2. Look closely

Make sure you’re looking closely at the coins in your change to check whether you have a commemorative coin, especially one featuring His Majesty.

50p with Queen Elizabeth II effigy and 50p with King Charles III effigy
50p with Queen Elizabeth II effigy and 50p with King Charles III effigy

The most obvious difference will be the effigy on the obverse of the coin. But it’s also a good idea to familiarize yourself with the reverse designs of commemorative coin so you know what you’re looking out for.

3. Do your research

The best way to identify coins you’ve found in your change is by using our Change Checker Web App.

Simply select the denomination, year and obverse monarch of the coin you’ve found to view all the possible coins it could be. You’ll find information like mintage figures and facts about the theme or designer.

Screenshot of King Charles coins on the Change Checker Web App
Screenshot of King Charles III 50p coins on the Change Checker Web App

You can also find much more information about your coin on our blog.

4. Check our scarcity index

Something else you’ll find on our web app is where each coin ranks on our scarcity index.

We combine mintage figures with how often a coin has been listed in collections to determine how scarce and sought after each coin is. Our scarcity index is updated quarterly as there can be some pretty big shake ups in the rankings.

5. Swap with others

If you’re looking for a specific coin and aren’t having any luck finding it in your change, you can use the swap centre on our web app or our Facebook community group to swap coins with other collectors.

Who knows, someone else might just have the coin you’re looking for!

Happy Hunting!

So there you have it, 5 tips you can use to start collecting King Charles III coins!

You may already have an impressive collection including some new King Charles coins. If so, post a photo of yours on social media and tag us, we’d love to see them!

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Demand for King Charles III Coins reaches across the pond

Since the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022, there’s been a huge shake up in the numismatic world. Not only have collectors been rushing to secure the very last coins featuring Queen Elizabeth II, but wanting to be the first to own new coins bearing King Charles III’s effigy.

But UK collectors aren’t the only ones wanting to collect new King Charles III coins…

King Charles III Coins
King Charles III Coins

A recent survey carried out by The Royal Mint revealed that coin collectors in the United States are interested in collecting new UK commemorative coins. Coin collectors in the US said their attitude to UK coins is changing as a new British monarch takes to the throne.

The figures

  • 21% of US coin collectors said they see the start of King Charles III’s reign as an opportunity to begin collecting UK commemorative coins.
  • 44% of US coin collectors already purchase UK commemorative coins.
The Royal Mint Survey Results
The Royal Mint Survey Results
  • 54% of US collectors of UK commemorative coins say they plan to increase their UK commemorative coin spend in 2023.
  • 76% of US collectors of UK commemorative coins have a positive view of King Charles III. This rose to 81% among a younger audience.
The Royal Mint Survey Results
The Royal Mint Survey Results

The Head of International Marketing at The Royal Mint, Josh Nesfield, said: “This new research shows growing appetite among US collectors for UK commemorative coins and how the change in UK monarchy is creating new coin interests for US Coin Collector.  For years, The Royal Mint has supported US coin collectors as they build their UK commemorative coin collections. We are delighted that more collectors plan to start building their UK coin collections.”

What does this mean for UK collectors?

This encouraging research highlights a continued appetite for UK coins among US numismatists, with it undeniably increasing in line with the new monarchy. The increasing excitement among US collectors means that demand for new UK coins will be at an all time high, especially during the lead up to King Charles III’s coronation.

Considering this, collectors will want to act fast to make sure they don’t miss out on owning these significant issues. Especially as demand is sure to increase in years to come. 

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