Commemorative and Unofficial Singapore 1953 Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal

This is the 60th Anniversary of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

The Diamond Jubilee medal was instituted to commemorate this special occasion. This is a very well designed and elegant medal (I hope to own one of this someday). It was designed by British professional calligrapher and illuminator Timothy Noad. The medal was awarded to personnel in the Armed Forces, emergency services and prison service, among others.

1953 Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II

Elizabeth, aged 26, ascended the throne upon the death of her father, King George VI, on 6 February 1952, and was proclaimed queen by her various privy and executive councils shortly afterwards. The coronation was held more than a year after the accession, on 2 June 1953. 

The 1953 Coronation Medal was instituted to commemorated the occasion. Numerous Singaporeans and Malaysians were awarded this medal, some of them (Elizabeth Choy, L/Cpl Guy Turner, Dato Thomas Vernon Alexander Brodie QC, Col H.J. Rae) travelled by ship to Britain to attend to Coronation Parade and received their medals.

An unofficial pewter commemorative Coronation Medal was also issued to Singaporeans back in 1953 to celebrate the Coronation of the Queen. When I just started collecting medals, such medals can be easily found in local flea markets and junk shops. These days they are getting hard to find.

This is a simple but historical medal. Hope our museum have a piece of this medal so that our future generations can view it and remember our past.