In 1986 to celebrate the Scottish XIII Commonwealth Games, the Royal Mint released a very Limited Issue Scottish Thistle £2 Two Pound Proof Coin.
This year, however, for the first time, the reverse of the £2 displays a newly approved design by sculptor Norman Sillman. It shows a Scottish thistle and a laurel wreath, superimposed on St Andrew's Cross and marks the XIII Commonwealth Games being held in Scotland in 1986.
This is the first Commemorative £2 Coin ever to be issued in the United Kingdom to mark a sporting occasion. The obverse bears Raphael Maklouf's elegant portrait of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, approved for use on the United Kingdom's coinage from 1985 onwards. These legal tender coins have been struck to proof quality using specially prepared dies and highly polished blanks.
