All Aboard!

The Royal Mint is releasing commemorative £2 coins to celebrate the iconic Duchess of Hamilton locomotive.

Built in September 1938 by LMS Crewe Works, the Duchess of Hamilton was a red Coronation Class streamliner for express passenger travel. It was briefly sent to North America to appear in the 1939 New York World’s Fair. It was returned to the United Kingdom in 1946, where it operated until February 1964.

Gary Breeze designed the reverse, which depicts the locomotive in full color speeding along railway tracks. The train’s Coronation Class number, 6229, appears above, and DUCHESS OF HAMILTON is inscribed below. The obverse features Martin Jennings’s effigy of King Charles III. Each coin’s packaging includes the history of the locomotive and explores its legacy.

The commemorative is available in gold proof, silver proof color, brilliant-uncirculated color, and brilliant-uncirculated versions. To purchase, visit the Royal Mint’s website.