Photo: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg/Getty

The official coin forKing Charles IIIhas made its debut.
On Thursday, The Royal Mint unveiled Charles' coin collection, which also salutes the lateQueen Elizabeth II.
“Today we are honored to reveal the first official effigy of His Majesty King Charles III appearing for the first time on a memorial coin collection honoring the life and legacy ofQueen ElizabethII,” The Royal Mint said on itswebsite.
The Royal Mint has created coins for the United Kingdom for more than 1,100 years, including the coins during Her Majesty’s 70-year reign.
Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg/Getty

British sculptor Martin Jennings served as the designer of the new coins, and Charles also “personally approved” of them, The Royal Mint said.
The coinage also follows tradition as Charles' portrait turns to the left, while his mother’s faces the right.

“Charles has followed that general tradition that we have in British coinage, going all the way back to Charles II actually, that the monarch faces in the opposite direction to their predecessor,” Chris Barker of the Royal Mint Museum said, per the AP.
RELATED VIDEO: King Charles Makes Major Change to Royal Family’s Social Media Profiles as Mourning Officially Ends
“Coins bearing portraits ofQueen ElizabethII and King Charles III will both circulate in change for years to come,” Royal Mint said.
A set of memorial coins will also be released on Oct. 3 “to mark this poignant moment in British history.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up to date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
“When first we used to make coins, that was the only way that people could know what the monarch actually looked like, not in the days of social media like now,” said Anne Jessopp, chief executive of the Royal Mint, according to the AP. “So the portrait of King Charles will be on each and every coin as we move forward.”
source: people.com