West Dorset artist Philip Nathan designs royal medal of honour to mark Queen's 90th birthday

Sculptor and coin designer Philip Nathan was commissioned to compose the charity medal by the London Mint Office to mark the Queen's 90th birthday on Saturday. All profits from every medal purchased will be donated to 76 charities for whom the Queen is patron.

The medal is large at 61mm in diameter, minted in solid bronze. The design depicts the Queen on horseback on one side - along with a more contemporary three quarter profile of Her Majesty on the reverse.

Mr Nathan, from Shipton Gorge, is best known for his signature portrait of Britannia, commissioned for British coinage in the 1980s and used on a number of coins since.

The finished medals

Mr Nathan said: "I have designed a number of special medals to commemorate historic Royal moments.

"It has been a particular honour to design the Queen’s 90th Birthday commemorative charity medal as she becomes the first British monarch to reach the age of 90.

"As always these things are interesting. I am semi-retired but it was a lovely project to work on, although it was a bit of a rush.

"The Queen riding on horseback is a familiar image. I could have either done something different or something that is familiar, so I chose to go down that route."

Mr Nathan, who has been designing coins for more than 50 years, is pleased to have been involved in the Queen's birthday celebrations.

"I'm delighted," he added. "I'm very enthusiastic about nationhood and the Queen's part in that.

"I don't really have a favourite project from over the years, but each one is a challenge. In this case, I had to hold back a lot of previous ideas as there was not time to explore some of them."

The medal is available to buy at queensmedal.co.uk and buyers can choose which charities their donation goes towards.

James Deeny, CEO at The London Mint Office, said, “Commemorative medals have long played an important historical role in celebrating major royal landmarks.

"The Queen has been a tireless supporter of many charities throughout her life so it seems fitting that this commemorative medal will raise money for numerous great causes for which she is a patron, while also creating a beautiful collector’s piece to mark this great occasion.”