Uncommon: fewer than 10,000,000 minted. Sells regularly: 15 verified sales in the last 12 months.
25 New Pence - Elizabeth II Queen Mother (1980)
"Queen Mother 80th Birthday crown"
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Year | 1980 |
| Denomination | 25 Pence |
| Face value | 25p |
| Mintage | 9,306,000 |
| Mint | Royal Mint · Llantrisant |
| Circulation | Circulating |
| Composition | Copper-nickel |
| Weight | 28.280g |
| Diameter | 38.6mm |
| Thickness | 2.89mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Milled |
| Orientation | Medal alignment ↑↑ |
| Obv. artist | Arnold Machin |
| Rev. artist | Richard Guyatt |
| Grade scale | UK (EF/UNC) |
Second crowned portrait of Queen Elizabeth II right, wearing the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara, legend around
Central portrait of the Queen Mother surrounded by a radiating pattern of symbolic bows and lions, which are an allusion to her family name.
25 New Pence - Elizabeth II Queen Mother market value
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Daily limit reached25 New Pence - Elizabeth II Queen Mother value by grade
Realised auction prices · ⭐ Pro Expand rows for individual sale records| Grade | Latest | Median | 30d Δ | All-time range | Sales (1yr) | Total sales | Last sale | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNC | £3.61 🔒 eBay | £3.61 (1) | – | £3.61 – £3.61 | 1 | 1 | 11-04-2026 | |
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| VF | £3.89 🔒 eBay | £3.90 | – | £1.16 – £59.34 | 14 | 15 | 23-09-2026 | |
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About the 1980 25 New Pence - Elizabeth II Queen Mother
The 1980 25 New Pence - Elizabeth II Queen Mother is a circulating 25 pence coin, struck in copper-nickel. It weighs 28.28g and measures 38.61mm across. Reverse design: Central portrait of the Queen Mother surrounded by a radiating pattern of symbolic bows and lions, which are an allusion to her family name.
9,306,000 were struck.
Common questions
How much is the 1980 25 New Pence - Elizabeth II Queen Mother worth?
Verified sold prices for the 1980 25 New Pence - Elizabeth II Queen Mother run from £3.61 to £3.90 across 2 grades, taking the median for each grade. Condition makes the difference, so check the grade table above before pricing one.
How many 1980 Queen Mother crowns were made?
The Royal Mint's striking figures give 9,306,000 cupro-nickel crowns struck to circulating standard in 1980. Of the four 25p crowns, only the 1972 Silver Wedding issue has a lower figure, at 7,452,100.
What is the face value of the 1980 Queen Mother crown?
It is 25p. No value appears on the coin, but the Royal Mint confirms that crowns struck before 1990 have a face value of 25p. The £5 crown issued in 1990 for the Queen Mother's 90th birthday is a different coin.
Who designed the Queen Mother 80th birthday crown?
Richard Guyatt designed the reverse, according to the Royal Mint. It shows a portrait of the Queen Mother surrounded by bows and lions. The obverse carries the portrait of Elizabeth II by Arnold Machin.
Why are there bows and lions on the 1980 crown?
They are a play on the Queen Mother's family name, Bowes-Lyon. The Royal Mint describes the portrait as surrounded by bows and lions, and Change Checker and Wikipedia both explain the pattern as a pun on her maiden name.
Is the 1980 Queen Mother crown legal tender?
Yes. The Royal Mint lists the 25p crown as legal tender for amounts up to ten pounds. It was made as a souvenir, however, and the Mint notes that banks and businesses are not required to accept commemorative coins.
How do I identify the 1980 25 New Pence - Elizabeth II Queen Mother?
Check the weight 28.28g and diameter 38.61mm and the metal (copper-nickel) against the specification table on this page. The reverse design is described above.
History and design
Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother turned 80 on 4 August 1980, and the Royal Mint marked the birthday with a crown. Change Checker records that it was issued that August. Like the other crowns of the period it has a face value of 25p, the decimal equivalent of five shillings.
According to Change Checker, her portrait on the reverse was the first time a person other than the reigning monarch had been portrayed on a British coin in their own lifetime.
The Royal Mint's striking figures give 9,306,000 cupro-nickel coins struck to circulating standard. Of the four 25p crowns only the 1972 Silver Wedding issue is lower, at 7,452,100. The 1981 Royal Wedding and 1977 Silver Jubilee crowns were made in far larger numbers.
Richard Guyatt designed the reverse. The Royal Mint describes it as a portrait of the Queen Mother in the centre, surrounded by bows and lions, with an inscription giving her title, QUEEN ELIZABETH THE QUEEN MOTHER, and the date of her birthday. The radiating bows and lions are a pun on her family name, Bowes-Lyon.
The obverse carries Arnold Machin's portrait of Elizabeth II, so the coin shows two Queen Elizabeths, mother and daughter. The edge is milled and no denomination appears on the coin.
Collecting notes
The Royal Mint describes crowns as souvenirs rather than coins for everyday use, so wear from circulation is not the usual concern. Check the open fields and the high points of both portraits for contact marks instead.
The coin is legal tender at 25p, although the Royal Mint points out that commemorative coins do not enter general circulation and banks and businesses need not accept them. A silver proof version was also made for collectors.
Do not confuse it with the Queen Mother's 90th birthday crown of 1990, which the Royal Mint lists as a £5 coin with a reverse by Leslie Durbin and Raphael Maklouf's portrait of the Queen. The next 25p crown was the 1981 Royal Wedding issue.
Sources
The history, design, varieties and collecting notes on this page are drawn from these sources. Prices come from recorded sales, not from them.
- Commemorative Coin Striking Numbers, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- £5 Coin Designs and Specifications, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Legal Tender Guidelines, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- British twenty-five pence coin, Wikipedia (read 9 Oct 2026)
- 25p Crown: Queen Mother's 80th Birthday, Change Checker (read 9 Oct 2026)
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