Powerful and influential, the early Tudors faced many threats to their sovereignty, and Henry VIII often used heraldry to legitimise his lineage. He commissioned a procession of carefully carved Royal Beasts from myth and legend to stand at the entrance to Hampton Court Palace, a statement of royal power with every heraldic shield and symbol.
These royal protectors are the inspiration behind The Royal Tudor Beasts Collection, a ten-coin collection that explores the rise of a royal dynasty. The Seymour Unicorn follows the Bull of Clarence onto the latest coin in the collection.
Before being chosen by Henry VIII to guard the Moat Bridge, the mythical unicorn wasn’t really known as a royal heraldic beast. Wild and untamed, the unicorn was believed to be the strongest of all creatures, so to have one set in stone outside the palace was a clear display of royal dominance. Many believed the unicorn also represented purity and fertility, and so by giving the beast to Jane Seymour, the king was perhaps hoping their marriage would be blessed with a son and heir.
• The fifth coin exploring the rise of the Tudor dynasty in the Royal Tudor Beasts Collection
• Features the Seymour Unicorn, a heraldic beast representing purity and fertility, given to Jane Seymour by Henry VIII
• Collection artist David Lawrence’s design was inspired by the stone sculpture at Hampton Court Palace
• Created in collaboration with the experts at Historic Royal Palaces
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