Did you know that the original £1 coin was first introduced into British purses more than 34 years ago? The trusty £1 coin has been one of the longest running coins produced by the Royal Mint, but it’s time for a refresh! This week, a brand new £1 coin was launched – and not only does it look very different to the old, round, gold coins, but there are lots of very clever security features that stop it being illegally copied so easily – one of the flaws of the old £1 coins.

The new £1 coin for 2017 is 12 sided, rather than round and like the current £2 coins, is bi-metallic – made of two different coloured metals. And the new £1 coin for 2017 will also feature a clever hologram that flickers between showing a £ symbol and the number 1. As well as the standard Queen’s head on one side of the coin, the reverse has a logo with four emblems that each signify one of the countries of Great Britain. There’s a red rose for England, a leek for us here in Wales, a Scottish thistle and a shamrock for Ireland.

The old £1 coins are still legal tender until October of this year, so there’s no need to panic and empty those piggy banks just yet.

And the new £1 coins, like all British monies, will be created right here in Wales at the Royal Mint. The Royal Mint has a long and legendary history – it dates back over 1,000 years. It is the only body permitted to produce coins for Great Britain, as well as other countries across the world and military and commemorative medals.

The Royal Mint began it’s history at the Royal Tower of London but by the 1960s, and despite many extensions, the site had reached it’s capacity. With the onset of decimalisation, much more space was needed to create millions of the new decimal coins, and so in 1967 it was announced that the Royal Mint would move to new buildings, just outside Cardiff in South Wales.

The new £1 coin for 2017 was released this week – so look out for these lovely shiny new coins, coming to your purse soon!