This reproduction Elizabeth I Testern is moulded directly from an original coin and is made from lead-free pewter.
Housed in specially designed packaging, the coin pack has an image of Elizabeth I on the front, the two coins in the collection inside, as well as historical information about the coins and Elizabeth I.
Known as 'portcullis money' these coins were minted for the first voyage of the East India Company. The obverse of the coin has the crowned royal shield of arms and on the reverse is a crowned portcullis.
Elizabeth I, daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn was born at Greenwich Palace on 7 September 1533. Her early life was traumatic, not least because her father executed her mother Anne when she was not quite three years old and her half-sister, Mary I, had her imprisoned for conspiracy to seize the throne during her reign. Elizabeth I acceded the throne in 1558, after Mary I’s death, and was crowned in January 1559.
The economy prospered, while Elizabeth’s court became a centre for poets, musicians, and scholars. William Shakespeare was a favourite of Elizabeth I and she would listen to his poetry and attend his plays. Elizabeth I died at Richmond Palace on 24 March 1603 at the age of 69. Her funeral and burial was at Westminster Abbey. Elizabeth was succeeded by James I, the son of Mary, Queen of Scots.
