Hot 50: MATT DENT

The familiar symbols of Britannia, the lion and the thistle, have been replaced by graphic designer Matt Dent’s segmented image of the royal heraldic shield.

Brighton University graduate Dent’s design unifies the 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p and 50p pieces to form a jigsaw that can be assembled to form the shield. The coin design approved by the Queen and the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, had a surprise win at the 2009 D&AD Awards, where Dent won a Yellow and a Black Pencil.

Dent, a director of London consultancy Three Fish in a Tree, unveiled his reverse coin design in April 2008 following an open Royal Mint competition in 2005.

Having made his mark on design, Dent continues to work on self-initiated projects.