MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

South Georgia releases three new coins: one of them to honor Prince George

The coin released to mark the birth of HRH Prince George

Three new South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands government coin designs have been released in recent months. The birth of His Royal Highness the Prince of Cambridge is marked by the release of a coin dated 2013, which is based on a coin originally released the previous year.

 The original coin marked the wedding anniversary and 30th birthdays of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, to which has been added a special privy mark to congratulate them and to commemorate the birth of their son on July 22nd 2013.

The coin shows the most anticipated moment of their Wedding Day, when the newly married couple displayed their love with a kiss on the balcony of Buckingham Palace to the delight of the millions of people watching. The Privy Mark has been added to this coin and shows a stork delivering its precious bundle with the date of the birth. To represent the baby boy the stork is colored blue.

Prince George is third in line to the throne of the United Kingdom and this is the first time since Queen Victoria’s era that there have been three living male heirs.

Another coin dated 2013 commemorates a ‘Lifetime of Service’ by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and His Royal Highness Prince Philip. Married in 1947, the Queen and Prince Philip have four children, eight grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Queen Elizabeth II acceded to the throne on February 6th 1952 following the death of her father, King George VI. Her Coronation took place on June 2nd 1953 at Westminster Abbey, the thirty-ninth Sovereign and sixth Queen to be crowned there.

The South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands coin features a coronation image of Her Majesty above a diamond with reflections running through. The royal themed coins have been approved by Buckingham Palace.

Finally the most recent coin release, also dated 2013, commemorates the centenary of the Grytviken Church, which was consecrated on Christmas Day 1913.

The church was built on the initiative of Carl Anton Larsen, the founder and first manager of the whaling station. The wooden church was designed by Larsen’s son-in-law, and pre-fabricated in Strømmen, Norway.

It has room for a congregation of 200 and an attached library. The two church bells were cast in Tønsberg, Norway, and were rung at midnight on Christmas Eve 1913. The church was consecrated by Pastor Kristen Løken who also baptized the daughter of the station manager during the service.

Only sporadically used in the following years and once nearly allowed to become derelict and collapse, the church is now one of the attractions of a visit to Grytviken and is the only building that has retained its original function. The coin features the simple church amongst the snowy surrounds of South Georgia.

The obverse of all three coins carry an effigy of HM Queen Elizabeth II by Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS and are available in Cupro Nickel and limited edition Proof Sterling Silver. South Georgia coins can be purchased from Pobjoy Mint and the South Georgia Post Office amongst other places.