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Primary sourceArtifact1838

Young Head coinage

William Wyon · 1838

British coins with William Wyon's portrait of the young queen, first used in 1838 and kept on some coins until 1887.

Shows how Victoria's youthful image was first presented on British coins after her accession in 1837.

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Gold coin, obverse, showing a left-facing profile bust of a young woman with hair in a bun, inscribed VICTORIA D G BRITANNIAR REGINA F D around the edge. Milled rim.
William Wyon, Young Head coinage, obverse of a gold five-shilling pattern coin, 1853.

About this source

What it is

The Young Head coinage is a series of British coins with an obverse bust of Queen Victoria designed by William Wyon. The bust was first used in 1838, when Victoria was still a teenager. This gold coin is a pattern struck in 1853, and it shows the young queen in left-facing profile with her hair in a bun. The inscription reads VICTORIA D G BRITANNIAR REGINA F D.

Why it matters

Wyon's young portrait became one of Victoria's favourite images, so it stayed on some coins long after she no longer looked like it. The bust was replaced on the penny and its fractions in the 1860s and was finally superseded by the Jubilee coinage in 1887. The coinage shows how the new queen was presented to the public, and how the Royal Mint, its engravers and the French-born Merlen worked together.

Look closer

  • How does the young queen's hairstyle and profile differ from the later Jubilee coinage?
  • Why might a monarch prefer an image of herself as a young woman?
  • What does the coin leave out about the rivalry and delays behind its production?

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