Bullion Meets Design: The Artists Behind the Best Known Bullion Coins

Bullion coins are first and foremost an instrument for preserving wealth. They are defined by their precious metal content, high mintages and a close link to the spot price of gold or silver. Nevertheless, they exert an aesthetic fascination on collectors and investors alike. Motifs such as Britannia, the American Eagle and the Vienna Philharmonic have long since become icons.

Behind these designs stand artists whose work often remains in the background. Some names are now firmly associated with particular coins, others are largely unknown because the designs emerged from a collective process within state mints. A look at the designers makes clear that bullion coins are not only investment objects, they are also small works of art.

Philip Nathan and Britannia

Britannia is arguably the best known European bullion coin. Its motif, the personification of Britain as a female figure with shield, helmet and trident, was created by Philip Nathan. Nathan, who trained at the Guildford School of Art and the Royal Academy Schools, initially worked for the Royal Mint and the Franklin Mint before becoming a freelance artist. His Britannia design of 1987 was selected in a competition and has formed the iconic basis of the series ever since.

What is particularly noteworthy is that Nathan translated a centuries old symbol into a modern, clean visual language. Even though the Royal Mint later introduced changing annual motifs, his design remains the foundation, which has been supplemented to the present day by additional security features.

John Mercanti and Emily Damstra: Two eagles for the American Eagle

The American Eagle is one of the world’s best selling bullion coins. From 1986 to 2021 its reverse featured a heraldic eagle motif designed by John Mercanti, the twelfth Chief Engraver of the United States Mint. Mercanti, who designed more than 100 coins and medals, combined traditional American symbolism with a clear, timeless style. The motif shaped the coin’s identity for over three decades.

In 2021 the series received a new reverse design. This came from Emily Damstra, a Canadian artist in the United States Mint’s Artistic Infusion Program. Her depiction of a bald eagle coming in to land with an oak branch brought fresh dynamism to the series without abandoning the classic symbolism. Damstra is a trained scientific illustrator and also works for the Royal Canadian Mint, where she has created numerous animal motifs.

Jody Clark: From the portrait to the Queen’s Beasts series

Another name closely linked with modern bullion coins is Jody Clark. In 2015 he designed the fifth definitive portrait of Queen Elizabeth II for the United Kingdom. His anonymously submitted design was the first for more than a hundred years to come from an internal employee of the Royal Mint, and it was modelled entirely digitally.

Clark was also responsible for the design of the complete Queen’s Beasts series, issued from 2016 to 2021, which depicted ten legendary heraldic beasts of the British monarchy. His hallmark is a high level of detail and modern clarity that makes coins stand out in both the collecting and investment markets.

Thomas Pesendorfer and the Vienna Philharmonic

On the European continent, the Vienna Philharmonic is the most successful bullion coin. Its motif was designed by Thomas Pesendorfer, then Chief Engraver of the Austrian Mint. Since its introduction in 1989, the coin has shown a selection of orchestral instruments on the obverse and the famous organ in the Golden Hall of the Vienna Musikverein on the reverse.

Pesendorfer served as Chief Engraver from 1993 to 2016 and received numerous awards for his work. His design is regarded as a prime example of how cultural symbolism can be translated into an investment medium. The Philharmonic has secured Austria a place at the top of the international coin market and has been the world’s best selling gold coin several times.

The Krugerrand and its artistic roots

Unlike many modern bullion coins, the Krugerrand cannot be clearly associated with a single contemporary artist. The obverse with the portrait of Paul Kruger goes back to the German engraver Otto Schultz, who designed the coins of the South African Republic in the nineteenth century.

The reverse with the springbok motif was created by Coert Steynberg, a renowned South African sculptor. He originally designed the image in 1947 for a five shilling coin. When the Krugerrand was introduced in 1967, this established design was adopted. The Krugerrand therefore exemplifies coins whose designs emerged from a longer tradition and cannot be attributed to a single person.

Martin Jennings: The first portrait of King Charles III

A very recent addition is provided by Martin Jennings, the British sculptor who designed the first official coin portrait of King Charles III in 2022. The Royal Mint unveiled the effigy shortly after the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Jennings showed the King, in keeping with tradition, facing left and without a crown, thereby continuing the classic line of British coin portraits.

The portrait was approved by the King himself and has since appeared on British circulating and commemorative coins. Beyond numismatics, Jennings is known as the creator of major public sculptures, including monuments to John Betjeman and Philip Larkin.

When no single name takes centre stage

While some coins are closely linked to well known designers, there are numerous examples in which no single originator is named. This is because many motifs arise in the context of competitions or in the workshops of state mints. The creative process is often collective in nature, accompanied by committees such as the Royal Mint Advisory Committee.

Especially with series that feature annually changing motifs, several artists are frequently involved. One example is the Australian Lunar series, whose animal motifs are designed by different engravers and illustrators. For investors and collectors, this means that the coins reflect an artistic diversity that goes beyond individual names.

Art and investment: a special symbiosis

The examples above make it clear that bullion coins are more than mere carriers of precious metal. They combine an economic function with artistic expression. Whether Nathan’s Britannia, Mercanti’s and Damstra’s Eagle, Clark’s Queen’s Beasts, Pesendorfer’s Philharmonic or the traditional Krugerrand, each of these coins embodies a story, a symbolism and a national identity.

For investors this creates an additional layer of value. Those who choose coins that convince not only through their precious metal content, but also through their design, are also investing in cultural forms of expression. And who knows which designs will themselves become collectors’ items one day and thus gain in significance beyond their pure gold or silver value.

“Bullion Meets Design” therefore shows how closely the world of investment coins is connected with art. Behind many of the best known coins stand artists with their own styles, whose names have now become part of numismatic history. At the same time, examples such as the Krugerrand illustrate that not every motif can be attributed to a single artist. Traditions, competitions and teamwork often shape a coin’s appearance.

For investors, the implication is this. Those who explore the history and designers of bullion coins not only understand the investment product better, they also open up an additional dimension of appreciation. Bullion coins are therefore both a secure investment and a cultural artefact.