Description
100 years ago the Unknown Warrior was laid to rest in Westminster Abbey. It was a solemn day: in the morning the coffin carrying the body of an unknown British soldier from WWI was put on a gun carriage and pulled by six horses through the streets of London on its way to Westminster Abbey. Hundreds of thousands of people lined the route in an eerie silence of respect for all those who had died in this terrible conflict.
Once at Westminster Abbey, the coffin was entombed and four sentinels – servicemen chosen from the army, navy and air corps – stood guard, their rifles upturned and heads bowed, as thousands filed by, paying their last respects.
The Unknown Warrior Heritage Set 1920-2020 includes an original gold sovereign of that very year, 1920. The depiction on the sovereign of St George slaying the dragon is symbolic of the triumph of good over evil. This is especially poignant when we consider the huge cost of that triumph not just in WWI but in all combat then and since.
The set also includes the brand new, British 2020 crown-sized £5 coin known as the ‘War and Peace’ crown – where the design cleverly features the words ‘war’ and ‘peace’ – one sunken into the background which resembles stone, and the other is raised – and they are arranged in the shape of a memorial cross.
These two coins are housed in a luxury wooden presentation case with informative certificate of authenticity.