Thomas Wyon the younger

Thomas Wyon the younger (1792- 22/23 September 1817) was an English medallist and chief engraver at the Royal Mint.

Wyon was born in Birmingham. He was apprenticed to his father, Thomas Wyon (1767–1830), the chief engraver of the King's seals, who taught him the art of engraving on steel; subsequently he studied at the sculpture school of the Royal Academy in London, where he earned silver medals in both the antique and the life class. In 1809, he struck his first medal, presented to Lieutenant Pearce, R.N. In 1810, he won the gold medal of the Society of Arts for medal engraving; the die, representing a head of Isis, was purchased by the society and used for striking its prize medals. From this period he produced many medals for schools, societies, Pitt clubs, and other institutions.

On 20 November 1811, Wyon was appointed probationary engraver to the Royal Mint, and was employed in making the bank tokens for England and Ireland, and coins for the British colonies and for Hanover. He also engraved his medal commemorative of the peace and his Manchester Pitt medal. On 13 Oct. 1815 he was appointed chief engraver to the mint, being then only twenty-three. The next year he brought out the new silver coinage for the United Kingdom (half-crown, shilling, and sixpence), designing the reverses himself. In 1817 he struck the maundy money, and began to make his pattern crown-piece in rivalry of Thomas Simon.

Signs of consumption now began to appear, and Wyon — a modest and talented artist — died on 23 (or 22) September 1817 at the Priory Farmhouse, near Hastings. He was buried in the graveyard attached to Christ Church, Southwark.

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