I collect old coins – the designs on them are so beautiful, especially foreign coins which seem so much more exotic.

Here are some gems from my collection

1. Two French coins from the 1930s and a belgian coin from 1914. The woman depicted on the 2 Francs is probably 'Marianne' who symbolises the French Republic and liberty. A bit like our Britannia in the U.K. On the 10c coin at the top is a Phrygian cap which is the red hat which Marianne wears on the big coin and is often depicted wearing. It is a symbol of the French revolution.

2. A close up of the 2 Francs coin - I think the design on this is absolutely stunning - the style is reminiscent of Art Nouveau with the flowers, fruit and elegant font, but also a bit of geometric Art Deco influence and a beautiful but strong profile.
The designer was the sculptor Alexandre Morlon.

3. The oldest coin I have, from 1899 - this one is quite tiny and really cool - the intricate and aggressive looking two headed eagle is the symbol for the Austro-Hungarian Empire which doesn't even exist any more. I think that is awesome.

4. Not an old coin, but a lovely one! the tiny little animal icons are so cute! This is the 2011 WWF 50p.

5. A coin from the reign of King George VI. He was a dude but was never meant to be King. He always lived under the shadow of his older brother Edward growing up, who was first in line for the throne. But Edward abdicated after a year of being King to marry Wallace Simpson -  a twice divorced American, as depicted in the beautiful film 'W.E.'. 

 George had a stammer and was often ill as a child with several health complaints. He was also pretty miserable growing up and didn't see his parents much which was common in the aristocracy at the time. He said when he had to tell his mother that his older brother was stepping down and that he had to be King "When I told her what had happened, I broke down and sobbed like a child."

The first few years of his reign were in the tension leading up to the second world war which he subsequently led the country in. He and his family stayed in London during the bombings and narrowly missed being killed by a bomb that hit Buckingham Palace while they were there. His brother, Prince George (King George's first name was actually Albert, he took on George when he took the throne), was killed in action in the war. The stress of the war took a toll on King George's health and he died aged 56.

Other reasons why he was a dude are; he played tennis at Wimbledon in 1926, had a stint big game hunting in Africa, and was the last Emperor of India. He was appalled when told to only shake the hands of whites in South Africa by the government there which is obvious to us, but this was the 1930s and he was the top of the pile, so I think this says a lot about him.

Unlike his upbringing, when he had children of his own (the current Queen Elizabeth and her sister) they were a close family. And a film has been made about him starring Colin Firth about him overcoming his stammer, called 'The King's Speech'.

I really like the look of these coins. the first one has a utilitarian bauhaus style - geometric and chunky and masculine -  and I like how the style of them changes over the years.