Edinburgh Pound Coin

Introducing the Edinburgh Pound Coin

Between 2010 to 2011, the Royal Mint launched a series of one pound coins called the ‘City Series.’ Each year had a release of two city coins, with 2011’s release for Edinburgh and Cardiff. Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and a seat of strength since the Middle Ages. The Scots also call the country ‘Auld Reekie,’ or ‘Old Smoky’ in the Scottish language.  Since its release, the Edinburgh one pound coin has lost its ability to be legal tender with a new decree in 2017, making this round pound coin a very hard find. 

Edinburgh 1 Pound Coin 2011

The Edinburgh 1 pound coin features the city’s Coat of Arms as the main focus on the coin, sitting on top of the badges of the other three capital cities. Designed by Stuart Devlin, the other cities’ Coat of Arms from left to right are: London, Cardiff, and Belfast. The motto is inscribed on the edge, ‘Nisi Dominus Frustra,’ or ‘It is vain without the Lord.’

Stuart Devlin spoke about designing his coin series, “I was really excited and privileged to design the new series, particularly as the £1 is such an important symbol in UK coinage. Representing the four capital cities, in a way that brings them together was a challenge, not least because capital cities are so politically sensitive and emotive. However, I worked on the principle that the key is to find something that people identify with.”

(Caption: Edinburgh City Arms in the City Chambers by kim traynor licensed by CC BY-SA 3.0)

How Much is the Edinburgh 1 Pound Coin Worth? 

The mintage for this special 1 pound coin is only 935,000, making this coin a very scarce find. In fact, it’s the toughest 1 pound coin to find, according to Change Checker. However, unlike some of the Beatrix Potter 50p coins, the highest going price on eBay for a circulated coin isn’t in the thousands or hundreds of pounds. The highest price, as of 2019, is £24.99.

Other Versions of the Edinburgh 1 Pound Coin 

There are also a few other versions of the coin. There is the Brilliant Uncirculated version, with a mintage of 10,000, the Silver Proof version, at a mintage of 5,000, the Silver Proof Piedfort version, at a mintage of 2,700, and the Gold Proof version with a mintage of 1,000. 

Other Coins in the 1 Pound ‘City Series’

As mentioned earlier, the Edinburgh 1 pound coin is part of a series of 1 pound coins released between 2010-2011. Known as the ‘City Series,’ the other coins in the collection are London and Belfast, released in 2010, and Cardiff in 2011.