1/4 oz Tudor Beasts Gold Coin

The 1/4 oz Tudor Beasts Gold Coin

The Tudor Beasts is an ongoing ten-coin series from The Royal Mint, released at a pace of two designs per year from 2022 through 2026. Each 1/4 oz coin contains 7.80 grams of 999.9 fine gold, carries a £25 face value, and is UK legal tender. That legal tender status provides CGT exemption for UK residents, the same tax advantage held by the 1/4 oz Britannia and the 1/4 oz Queen's Beasts.

The series draws on the heraldic beasts from the stone statues on the Moat Bridge at Hampton Court Palace, originally placed there by Henry VIII. These are Tudor-era symbols, distinct from the coronation-era beasts of the predecessor Queen's Beasts series (2016-2021). All ten reverses are designed by David Lawrence, an illustrator and sculptor with over 30 years of experience.

With 43 active dealers, the 1/4 oz Tudor Beasts has strong market availability. Premiums sit between standard bullion coins like the Britannia and fully numismatic pieces, positioning the Tudor Beasts as a collector-investor crossover product. The series straddles the transition from Queen Elizabeth II to King Charles III, with early issues (2022) bearing Elizabeth's portrait by Jody Clark and later issues (2023 onward) featuring Charles III by Martin Jennings.

1/4 oz Tudor Beasts Gold Specifications

Release Schedule

All bullion reverses feature a guilloche patterned background, a geometric lattice design that serves as both an aesthetic feature and a counterfeiting deterrent. This mirrors the approach used on the Queen's Beasts from 2018 onward. The Tudor Beasts does not carry the Britannia's four-feature security suite (surface animation, latent image, tincture lines, micro-text). The obverse transitions from Elizabeth II (Jody Clark portrait, 2022 coins) to Charles III (Martin Jennings portrait, 2023 onward), meaning the series spans both reigns. Silver Tudor Beasts are struck at 999.9 purity (four nines), higher than the Britannia's 999 (three nines), a differentiator that the Royal Mint's "beasts" franchise consistently maintains.

Tudor Beasts Tax Treatment

The 1/4 oz Tudor Beasts carries the same dual tax exemption as other Royal Mint legal tender coins, making it one of the most tax-efficient gold coin options available in the UK.

United Kingdom

Gold Tudor Beasts coins are VAT-free as investment gold and CGT-exempt as UK legal tender. This is identical to the tax position of the 1/4 oz Britannia and the 1/4 oz Queen's Beasts. The annual CGT allowance is currently £3,000, so the exemption becomes materially valuable on larger holdings or when gold has appreciated significantly since purchase.

By contrast, non-UK coins such as the 1/4 oz Krugerrand, 1/4 oz Maple Leaf, and 1/4 oz Philharmonic are VAT-free on purchase but are subject to CGT on gains. The Tudor Beasts' higher purchase premium over those coins can be recovered through CGT savings at disposal, depending on the size of the gain and the investor's tax position.

Other Markets

• US: Not specifically IRA-eligible under current IRS approvals. Capital gains taxed at the collectibles rate of up to 28%.
• EU: Gold versions are VAT-exempt under the EU Investment Gold Directive (999.9 purity exceeds all thresholds).
• Canada: GST/HST-exempt as investment gold meeting the 99.5% purity requirement.
• Australia: GST-free as investment-grade gold.
• Singapore: GST-exempt under the IPM scheme.
• Hong Kong: No sales tax or import duty.

From Hampton Court Palace to Modern Bullion

The beasts depicted in the Tudor Beasts series originate from the stone statues on the Moat Bridge at Hampton Court Palace. The palace was built by Cardinal Thomas Wolsey from 1514 and later acquired by Henry VIII. The original beast statues were placed by Henry VIII as heraldic symbols of the Tudor dynasty and its predecessors. The current statues at Hampton Court are 20th-century replicas carved by Joseph Cribb in the 1930s, as the originals had deteriorated over the centuries.

The Royal Mint announced the series with the Seymour Panther in October 2021, with bullion sales beginning in 2022. The series was positioned as the direct successor to the Queen's Beasts (2016-2021), maintaining the format of ten heraldic beasts across five years at two releases per year. Key differences from the predecessor include a new designer (David Lawrence replacing Jody Clark), Tudor-era rather than coronation-era heraldry, and the addition of a 1 oz silver bullion option alongside the 2 oz that was the Queen's Beasts' signature silver format.

The series runs concurrently with the Britannia, with The Royal Mint positioning them for different audiences: the Britannia targets core bullion demand with its advanced security features and iconic design, while the Tudor Beasts targets the collector-investor crossover market with annual design variety and historical storytelling. The Queen's Beasts precedent (concluded with a Completer Coin depicting all ten beasts) suggests a similar capstone release may follow the Tudor Beasts' tenth design in 2026.

Tudor Beasts vs Queen's Beasts, Britannia, and Perth Lunar

The most direct comparison is with the 1/4 oz Queen's Beasts from The Royal Mint. Both series share 999.9 purity, UK legal tender status, CGT exemption, and a ten-beast heraldic format. The Queen's Beasts is now a completed series (2016-2021) with fixed supply, while the Tudor Beasts is still in production. This creates different secondary market dynamics: Queen's Beasts premiums have been rising since the series ended, while Tudor Beasts can still be purchased at primary market premiums for current-year releases.

Against the 1/4 oz Britannia, both share CGT exemption and 999.9 purity. The Britannia's advantages are its four-feature security suite, its wider international recognition, and its generally lower premiums as an open-ended bullion programme. The Tudor Beasts' advantages are annual design variety and potential collectible premium appreciation as the series progresses toward completion.

The 1/4 oz Perth Lunar shares the annual-design-change format and 999.9 purity, but lacks CGT exemption in the UK (not UK legal tender). The Perth Lunar has a longer track record across three complete zodiac cycles since 1996 and stronger recognition in Asian-Pacific markets. For UK investors, the Tudor Beasts' CGT exemption gives it a clear tax edge over the Perth Lunar.

Among all 1/4 oz gold coins, the Tudor Beasts sits in the premium-bullion segment: priced above standard bullion like the 1/4 oz Krugerrand or 1/4 oz Philharmonic, but below proof or high-mintage-limited collectibles. Buyers focused purely on accumulating gold at the lowest cost per ounce will do better with standard bullion. Buyers who want UK tax efficiency combined with collectible design appeal have the Tudor Beasts, Queen's Beasts, and Britannia as their core options.