Why do English monarchs face different directions on coins?
When you place the current £1 coin next to its predecessor, you will notice Charles III is looking toward his mother. This video explores the 500-year tradition of alternating the direction of royal portraits on English coinage.
Tom Hockenhull, the Keeper of Money and Medals at the British Museum, examines the history of English coinage to explain why monarchs' faces often face different directions. The presentation traces this practice back through five centuries of minting, investigating when the pattern began and the potential reasons behind it.
Beyond the alternating tradition, the video also investigates instances where this long-standing rule was broken and why the practice of rotating portraits became a standard feature of the nation's currency.
Source: Why the Kings and Queens of England face different directions on coins | Curator's Corner S9 Ep9
