In 2017 to celebrate the upcoming new 12 Sided Nations of the Crown £1 One Pound Coin which will enter circulation in 2017, the Royal Mint have released this special Limited Issue 12 Sided Nations of the Crown Piedfort £1 One Pound Silver Proof Coin struck in solid .925 Sterling Silver Certified Slabbed and Graded by PCGS as PR70 DCAM.
The reverse designed by David Pearce who was just 15 years old when he won the public design competition and depicts
the English rose, the Welsh leek, the Scottish thistle and the Northern Irish shamrock emerging from one stem within a royal coronet while the obverse features the stunning Fifth Portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Jody Clark .
These legal tender coins have been struck to proof quality using specially prepared dies and highly polished blanks.
Piedforts are coins which have been specially struck on thicker than normal blanks.
As their name suggests they are closely associated with France, where from the twelfth century they were apparently issued by the Kings as presentation pieces.
In Britain the practice of striking piedforts is later and less frequent, but medieval and Tudor examples are known.