Edward VIII abdicated in December 1936 before any circulating coinage bearing his effigy entered production, making him the only 20th-century British monarch with no official circulation issue. This 1987 piece is a retrospective strike issued decades after his reign, part of a wave of collector interest in the abdication gap. The Royal Mint had actually prepared pattern coins in 1936 — those originals are museum pieces — so all Edward VIII coins reaching the public market are later productions.
Edward VIII abdicated in December 1936 before any circulating coinage bearing his effigy entered production, making him the only 20th-century British monarch with no official circulation issue. This 1987 piece is a retrospective strike issued decades after his reign, part of a wave of collector interest in the abdication gap. The Royal Mint had actually prepared pattern coins in 1936 — those originals are museum pieces — so all Edward VIII coins reaching the public market are later productions.