The Who Celebrated With New Royal Mint Selection of Coins
The British Royal Mint has unveiled a new collection of coins in honor of the Who's long career.
The coins are printed with various Who-inspired images, such as a mod logo, a Union Jack flag and a Rickenbacker guitar (the kind Pete Townshend has a knack for smashing).
The Who are now the fourth British rock act to receive the Royal Mint treatment, joining David Bowie, Queen and Elton John.
“The coin’s design captures the true essence of the band and what we represent," singer Roger Daltrey, who personally visited the government-owned mint for the occasion, said in a statement. "It was a fantastic moment being able to strike one of the very first pieces in the collection and see the range of technologies and processes involved in the making of the coin.”
“The design had to capture the bands musical flair and reflect the band’s image," said artist Henry Gray, who designed the coins. "The subject had to be instantly recognizable as the Who without actually showing the band.” Gray set to work with various designs, experimenting with symbols and images that would best represent the group.
“The Union flag has always been used by the band in promotional material, but more than that, they used to use it as a set dressing, as a costume and even as a speaker stack covering," he noted. "And it had to be about ‘Pinball Wizard,’ because I think that, although it’s not necessarily their most famous song, it is one of the most recognizable for fans and more general music lovers alike.”
Ranging in price from a little more than $18 to more than $3,000, the coins are now available for purchase at the Royal Mint website. You can see the designs below.