United Kingdom: Latest 50-pence coin in the official Christmas series features the world of The Snowman

The Royal Mint has released the sixth design in their popular Christmas 50-pence coin series celebrating Raymond Briggs’ timeless, magical tale of a young boy and his snowman. First launched in 2018, each design has captured a special scene in the story featuring the snowman and James and is depicted in full colour on both the sterling silver Proof and cupro-nickel versions.

The story began as a wordless picture book, created and illustrated by the late Raymond Briggs in 1978. Published by Puffin, The Snowman has sold over 5.5 million copies around the world. The heartwarming story of a boy who befriends a magical snowman has become a classic winter’s tale that is now synonymous with Christmas in Britain. First broadcast on British television on the 26th December 1982, The Snowman is a 26-minute animated film based on Raymond Briggs’ publication. The softly illustrated animated scenes were paired together without spoken dialogue and became an immediate success, receiving a nomination for the 1982 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. A sequel entitled The Snowdog was subsequently released in 2012 to equal popularity.

For 2023, the latest design continues the enchanted story of James, who builds a snowman that magically comes to life, and both boy and snowman embark on an unforgettable adventure. The dedicated design team at the Royal Mint combines traditional craftsmanship with innovative digital colour printing technology to bring the design to life, keeping true to the hand-drawn, nostalgic quality of artist Robin Shaw’s sketches, which are inspired by Raymond Brigg’s original illustrations. Shown is a scene where the snowman, as he comes to life, happily dances with James, still in his bathrobe and in his backyard.

The obverse side includes, for the first time in the Christmas series, the effigy of HM King Charles III created by engraver Martin Jennings and introduced onto British coinage last year. Both the denomination of 50 PENCE and the year of issue, 2023, are shown as part of the legend surrounding the King’s likeness.

Denom.	Metal	Weight	Diameter	Quality	Maximum Mintage
50 pence	Cupro-nickel	8 g	27.3 mm	Brilliant Unc.	Unlimited
50 pence	Cupro-nickel	8 g	27.3 mm	Brilliant Unc. with applied colour	10,000
50 pence	.925 Silver	8 g	27.3 mm	Proof with applied colour	5,000
50 pence	.9167 Gold	15.5 g	27.3 mm	Proof	100

The Brilliant Uncirculated base metal versions are presented in a Christmas-card type format suitable for exchanging as a holiday greeting. The special edition cupro-nickel colour reverse is presented in a folder with illustrations of the snowman and text describing the animated film. The silver Proof coins are housed in a custom perspex/lucite case, enabling the coin to be displayed and viewed from both sides. The gold Proof version is presented in a custom hardwood high gloss case accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. For additional information, please click here.

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