Ryal: Elizabeth I in Ship (obverse); Rose over Radiate Sun (reverse) (1583–84/85): Art, History and Details

Ryal: Elizabeth I in Ship (obverse); Rose over Radiate Sun (reverse) (1583–84/85) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

An excellent specimen of a very rare coin, the figure of the queen is full of minute detail. Elizabeth I is shown sailing on a ship; she holds an orb and scepter. A rose appears on the hull of the ship and an E on the banner located on the bow. Produced at the climax of her reign, the design was chosen to demonstrate England's superior naval power and colonization of what would become the United States of America.

Object facts

• Title: Ryal: Elizabeth I in Ship (obverse); Rose over Radiate Sun (reverse)
• Date: 1583–84/85
• Culture: England, Elizabeth I, 1558-1603
• Type: Coins
• Technique: gold
• Dimensions: Diameter: 3.4 cm (1 5/16 in.)
• Collection: MED - Numismatics
• Department: Medieval Art
• Accession number: 1969.183

A detail from the museum

The ryal, 15 shillings, was the rarest denomination and was minted in exceedingly small numbers.

Collection credit

The Norweb Collection

Further reading listed by the museum

• Cleveland Museum of Art, and Emery May Norweb. English Gold Coins, Ancient to Modern Times, On Loan to the Cleveland Museum of Art from the Norweb Collection. [Catalog. 1968.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.