Guernsey 20 pence 1983 - Guernsey Milk Can

The coin's story

The 20 pence coin appeared in Guernsey in 1982, the same year as in the United Kingdom, with its shape of a heptagon with curved sides. Its reverse, engraved by Frederick Mogford, shows the island's traditional pot-bellied milk can with its lid, recalling the importance of breeding the Guernsey cow, renowned for its rich milk. The obverse keeps the seal of the bailiwick with three leopards, which dates back to 1279 and King Edward I. The Guernsey pound is not a separate currency but a local issue of the pound sterling, at par with it. The Royal Mint struck 500,000 pieces in 1983, the second and last year of the type, before the island's coins were renewed in 1985.