Cool Pic Archive Pages
| 1 |
2 | 3 |
4 | 5
| 6 | 7
| 8 | 9
| 10 | 11
| 12 | 13
| 14 | 15
| 16 | 17
| 18 | 19
| 20 | 21
| 22 | 23
| 24 | 25
| 26 | 27
| 28 | 29
| 30 |
These images have been chosen for their uniqueness. Subject matter ranges from
historic events, to really cool phenomena in science and engineering, to relevant
place, to ingenious contraptions, to interesting products (which now has its own
dedicated Featured Product
category).
A decision was made by the United Kingdom
in 1994 to produce 2-pound (£2) coins for general circulation. Public input
was sought regarding a theme for the design of the reverse face (back) of the coins;
the obverse (front) would feature the standard bust of the Queen. Four years later,
the British Royal Mint issued
its first coin. The bi-color coins all have a nickel-brass (dark) inner component
and a cupro-nickel (light) outer component. Designs would tell the story, through
symbolic devices, of technological development from the Iron Age to the Industrial
Revolution and from the Computer Age to the Internet. An edge inscription was included
to identify the object or event being commemorated.
Designed by Robert Evans, the third coin in the yearly series pays tribute to
the contributions of
Guglielmo Marconi. Per the British Royal Mint's website: "100th Anniversary
of Marconi's 1st Wireless Transmission across the Atlantic. Radio waves decorating
centre and outer border while a spark of electricity linking the zeros of the date
represents the generation of the signal designed by Robert Evans." The chosen design
contains a rendition of the familiar
Smith Chart in
the center (admittance circles drawn as implemented), with what can be interpreted
as skywaves propagating
around the Earth (DXers will appreciate that). Four radial lines emanate from the
left edge of the Smith Chart, each containing two sets of three small circles when
beginning with the bottom line and progressing counter-clockwise, move farther away
from the origin, probably representing information packets moving through space.
Why four lines and groups of three dots? Darned if I know. The innermost admittance
circle has the year 2001 inscribed, with a portion of an electrical 'zap' between
'20' and '01.' Hash marks on the inner rim of the circle at first look like compass
rose increments, but they are actually irregular and most likely are suppose to
look like frequency components on a spectrum analyzer. An inscription along the
edge reads, "Marconi 1904 Wireless Bridges the Atlantic."
Some of the other designs include commemorations to
Isaac Newton,
the discovery of DNA by Watson and Crick, the steam locomotive engine by
Richard Trevithick, structural engineer
Isambard Kingdom Brunel (what a name!),
Johannes
Gutenberg's moveable type printing press, and nursing stalwart
Florence Nightingale.
BTW, I love the British
Royal Mint's listing in its credentials, "With more than 1,000 years of experience,
the Royal Mint is planning for organic growth and sustainable profits." How many
companies can claim a millennium of existence?
Thanks to RF Cafe visitor Paul P. for alerting me to the coin and for generously
mailing one to me all the way from the U.K!
British 2-Pound Marconi Commemorative Coin
Posted December 16, 2012
|
