Is this the most impressive medal ever designed in Britain?

Many experts regard Benedetto Pistrucci’s Waterloo medal as the engraver’s masterpiece. This is high praise considering he also designed the classic St George and the dragon reverse, used on gold Sovereigns.

Commissioned to celebrate the Allied victory at the Battle of Waterloo, Pistrucci’s medal took over thirty years to complete and was never struck in his lifetime.

More than 200 years later, the design has been repurposed for UK coinage as a new entry to The Royal Mint’s Great Engravers collection. To celebrate this release, we are delving into the complicated story and design of Pistrucci’s medal and the milestone battle that inspired it.