Common: 10,000,000 or more minted. Sells regularly: 15 verified sales in the last 12 months.
6 Pence - Elizabeth II 1st portrait with 'BRITT:OMN' (1953)
"Tanner"
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Year | 1953 |
| Denomination | 6 Pence |
| Face value | 2.5p |
| Mintage | 70,323,876 |
| Mint | Royal Mint · Llantrisant |
| Circulation | Circulating |
| Demonetised | 1980 |
| Composition | Copper-nickel (75% Cu, 25% Ni) |
| Weight | 2.830g |
| Diameter | 19.3mm |
| Thickness | 1.00mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Milled |
| Orientation | Medal alignment ↑↑ |
| Obv. artist | Mary Gillick |
| Rev. artist | Edgar Fuller and Cecil Thomas |
| Grade scale | UK (EF/UNC) |
Young laureate bust of Queen Elizabeth II right, legend around.
ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA BRITT OMN REGINA
Tudor rose, shamrock, thistle and leek aligned in a cross, legend above, denomination and date below.
with 'BRITT:OMN' Sixpence market value
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Affiliatewith 'BRITT:OMN' Sixpence price history
Daily limit reachedwith 'BRITT:OMN' Sixpence 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VF | £3.00 🔒 eBay | £1.53 | – | £0.62 – £4.25 | 12 | 12 | 05-10-2026 | |
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| MS-64 | £54.40 🔒 eBay | £54.40 (1) | – | £54.40 – £54.40 | 1 | 1 | 24-09-2026 | |
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| PR-65 | £3.78 🔒 eBay | £2.89 (2) | – | £1.99 – £3.78 | 2 | 2 | 21-09-2026 | |
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About the 1953 6 Pence - Elizabeth II – with 'BRITT:OMN'
The 1953 6 Pence - Elizabeth II – with 'BRITT:OMN' is a circulating 6 pence coin, struck in copper-nickel (75% Cu, 25% Ni). It weighs 2.83g and measures 19.3mm across. Reverse design: Tudor rose, shamrock, thistle and leek aligned in a cross, legend above, denomination and date below.
70,323,876 were struck. It is no longer legal tender (withdrawn 1980), so its value is to collectors only.
Common questions
How much is the 1953 6 Pence - Elizabeth II – with 'BRITT:OMN' worth?
Verified sold prices for the 1953 6 Pence - Elizabeth II – with 'BRITT:OMN' run from £1.53 to £54.40 across 3 grades, taking the median for each grade. Condition makes the difference, so check the grade table above before pricing one.
What is special about the 1953 sixpence?
It is the only sixpence of Elizabeth II with BRITT OMN in the obverse legend. Coins of the UK records that the words were dropped from 1954, when a more deeply engraved portrait was also introduced, so 1953 stands as a one-year type.
How many 1953 sixpences were made?
Coin Hunter gives 70,323,876 for circulation, the figure the site also holds, while Wikipedia lists 70,363,876. Coin Hunter adds 40,000 proofs. No Royal Mint figure was found, so the exact number should be treated as approximate.
Is a 1953 sixpence rare?
No. Around 70 million were struck for circulation. It is scarcer than the later dates of the reign, most of which ran past 100 million, but it remains an easy coin to find.
Who designed the 1953 sixpence?
Mary Gillick made the portrait of the Queen, which won a competition entered by 17 sculptors. The Royal Mint credits the reverse of interlaced rose, thistle, shamrock and leek to Edgar Fuller and Cecil Thomas.
Can I still spend a 1953 sixpence?
No. The sixpence was worth 2.5 new pence after decimalisation and the Royal Mint states it was demonetised in 1980. Wikipedia, citing the Mint's official history, gives the last day of legal tender as 30 June 1980.
How do I identify the 1953 6 Pence - Elizabeth II – with 'BRITT:OMN'?
Check the weight 2.83g and diameter 19.3mm and the metal (copper-nickel (75% Cu, 25% Ni)) against the specification table on this page. The reverse design is described above.
History and design
Elizabeth II came to the throne in February 1952, and the Royal Mint had to prepare a new portrait and new reverses for the whole coinage. The Mint records that almost 300 reverse designs from around 70 artists went before the Royal Mint Advisory Committee, and that the sixpence was among the denominations given a new design.
Coins dated 1953 carry the royal title BRITT OMN, short for "of all the Britains". It lasted only one year. The Royal Titles Act 1953 and the proclamation of 28 May 1953 recast the Queen's style to reflect the Commonwealth, and the Royal Mint notes that BRITT OMN was then omitted from her titles on the coinage owing to the changing status of many Commonwealth territories. Coins of the UK confirms the shorter legend on every sixpence from 1954.
Coin Hunter gives 70,323,876 sixpences dated 1953 for circulation, plus 40,000 proofs. Wikipedia prints 70,363,876. Either way it is lower than any later circulating date of the reign, the nearest being 1959 at 93,089,441, though still a very large issue.
The obverse is Mary Gillick's portrait, chosen from entries by 17 sculptors. The Royal Mint notes that it shows the Queen wearing a laurel wreath rather than a crown, with some of the shoulders included, inside a continuous legend: ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA BRITT OMN REGINA. Wikipedia records that Gillick's original master lacked relief, so detail on the face and dress was weak, and Cecil Thomas re-cut the dies. Coins of the UK describes the 1954 head as more deeply engraved.
The reverse, credited by the Royal Mint to Edgar Fuller and Cecil Thomas, interlaces a rose, thistle, shamrock and leek for the four home nations, with FID DEF above and the denomination and date below. The edge is milled and the coin is cupro-nickel.
Collecting notes
Check the legend first. BRITT OMN between GRATIA and REGINA marks this type; without it the coin is the 1954 to 1967 sixpence. Because the 1953 head is in lower relief, the hair and shoulder detail look soft even on unworn coins, so judge wear on the reverse leaves as well.
Coin Hunter lists 40,000 proofs for the Coronation year alongside the circulation strikes, so a 1953 sixpence with a proof finish is a separate collector piece rather than a lucky find from change.
The sixpence was valued at 2.5 new pence after 1971 and stayed in use until the Royal Mint demonetised it in 1980, so it cannot be spent. The Royal Mint Museum calls it the most popular of the old coins by the time of decimalisation, and with some 70 million struck, worn 1953 examples are easy to find.
Sources
The history, design, varieties and collecting notes on this page are drawn from these sources. Prices come from recorded sales, not from them.
- The First Coins Struck for Elizabeth II, The Royal Mint (read 10 Oct 2026)
- Mary Gillick, Wikipedia (read 10 Oct 2026)
- London Gazette, Supplement 39873, page 3023 (Royal Titles proclamation, 28 May 1953), The Gazette (read 10 Oct 2026)
- The Pre-Decimal Coinage of Elizabeth II, The Royal Mint (read 10 Oct 2026)
- 1957 Queen Elizabeth II Gold Sovereign, The Royal Mint (read 10 Oct 2026)
- By Royal Approval: the United Kingdom's New Definitive Coins, The Royal Mint (read 10 Oct 2026)
- Coin Names and Their Nicknames: The Sixpence, The Royal Mint (read 10 Oct 2026)
- The Sixpence, Tony Clayton, Coins of the UK (read 10 Oct 2026)
- Sixpence (British coin), Wikipedia (read 10 Oct 2026)
- 1953 Coin Values, Elizabeth II, Coin Hunter (read 10 Oct 2026)
- Sixpence, Royal Mint Museum (read 10 Oct 2026)
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