• 886, the newly launched lifestyle brand from The Royal Mint, unveils its debut line of in-house fine jewellery and homeware
• Designed by Creative Director Dominic Jones, the understated unisex pieces are predominately crafted in-house in the UK using gold recovered from electronic waste.
• The 886 collection is inspired by The Royal Mint’s heritage and the concept of wearable assets; each piece carries a visual marker of its precious metal gram weight.
• The range combines ancient medal-making techniques with The Royal Mint’s innovative, precision engineering skills
• Each jewellery piece is available in solid 18ct gold, solid 9ct gold, solid Britannia and Sterling silver, making quality design accessible to all.

886: a new era for The Royal Mint as the home of precious metals

886 is a new luxury lifestyle brand from The Royal Mint that celebrates the intrinsic value of precious metal and champions traditional British craftsmanship. Creative Director, award-winning designer Dominic Jones, oversees the creation of contemporary fine jewellery and homeware collections inspired by The Royal Mint’s heritage as Britain’s oldest maker.

The new brand will help to preserve the rare skills of The Royal Mint’s craftspeople, while promoting sustainable design and manufacturing. Around 70% of the collection is currently produced in-house at The Royal Mint manufacturing facility in Llantrisant, South Wales, utilising legacy techniques whilst developing new skills within the workforce to create objects of lasting value. The 886 collection represents a new era for the home of precious metals.

Introducing the 886 inaugural collection

The debut collection of elevated essentials takes its name from the period The Royal Mint was founded, circa 886, and features classic hoop earrings, T-bar chains, timeless bands, simple studs, traditional signet rings and elegant cuffs. The modern, genderless pieces are designed to be worn as a second skin. As such, they are made to last.

Each piece is crafted from solid gold or silver, using ancient techniques more commonly used in coin and medal-making. Precious metals are struck, forged and pulled rather than cast, increasing the density of the metal and making it 30% stronger. The result is jewellery with a satisfying weight, remarkable durability and a superior lustre.

Each design is available in 18ct solid gold, 9ct solid gold, Sterling and Britannia silver in a variety of different widths and weights: never plated, and never hollow. Pieces are hallmarked alongside the gram weight of the metal, a marker of intrinsic value that can be passed down through generations.

“The 886 collection began with the idea of an institutional gold bullion that has been distorted, inverted and warped into a gentle, soft shape that feels like it floats off the skin. I wanted to celebrate the inherent beauty of precious metal, without the distraction of stones or design flourishes. It’s very brave in its simplicity,” says Creative Director Dominic Jones.

“I was also inspired by a friend who on his 21st birthday was given a solid gold cuff that contained a notch for every gram of gold. He knew that if he ever needed to, he could melt down a section of the bracelet as it had an inherent value,” Jones continues. “The Royal Mint was created as a trusted place to store value through materials, and the 886 collection explores the idea of jewellery as a wearable asset, in beautiful, classic pieces that will retain their value for multiple generations.”

Superior British craftsmanship, unique hidden details

Behind the crisp, understated aesthetic of the debut 886 collection lies thoughtful design and complex craftsmanship. Smooth curves of highly polished metal are finished with a gentle undercut to achieve the illusion that the jewellery hovers above the skin. The 886 collection’s hero product, a minimalistic cuff, is engraved on the underside with a poem dedicated to gold or silver, a nod to the secret messages contained within coins and medal design. Future collections will continue to feature verse by celebrated British poets and contemporary wordsmiths.

The launch collection includes a design utilising caustics - a proprietary technique traditionally used by The Royal Mint craftspeople as an innovative security feature by which the surface of an object is formed in such a way as to sculpt light and to cast a reflection to reveal a hidden image - an enigmatic secret that only the wearer can choose to reveal.

Sustainable precious metals

886 is the first luxury jewellery brand to use 100% recovered gold sourced from discarded electronic waste. The Royal Mint has partnered with Canadian clean technology firm Excir to extract pure gold from discarded laptops and mobile phones, using Excir’s pioneering technology. The patented chemical formula recovers over 99% of the gold contained within used electronics, supporting a UK-based circular economy and providing a fresh source of high-quality precious metal. 

Celebrating Britishness: the 886 launch campaign

The 886 collection campaign celebrates the tradition of British portraiture and the history of The Royal Mint as a visual storyteller. For centuries The Royal Mint has commemorated people and occasions through coins and precious metals. The 886 collection embraces this tradition with a series of portraits that celebrate the faces and personalities that embody Britain today. The campaign features a diverse cast of characters to showcase the versatility of the debut collection: a tangible, tactile store of value accessible for every gender, age, ethnicity, and background.

Precision engineered homeware crafted in precious metals

The 886 collection includes a selection of precious, everyday objects created in collaboration with contemporary British stationery tool brand Makers Cabinet, and historic British writing instrument maker Yard-O-Led.

Three signature Makers Cabinet designs – a highly engineered folding ruler, pencil plane sharpener, and aperture circle drawing tool have been collaboratively designed and manufactured on-site at The Royal Mint’s facility in Llantrisant, South Wales.

A Yard-O-Led pen and pencil, employing techniques honed by their skilled craftsmen over the last 200 years, have been the focus of a design collaboration leading to a limited edition run with The Royal Mint.

“We wanted to elevate the tools that are used to create portraiture, reflecting The Royal Mint’s history as a visual storyteller, and its unique alchemy of precious materials and precise engineering,” says Royal Mint Collections Creative Director Dominic Jones. “We chose to work with Makers Cabinet and Yard-O-Led as the perfect examples of an exciting, contemporary brand and a historic British house, reflecting the mixture of modernity and heritage at the heart of 886.”

The collaboration is the first of many partnerships between The Royal Mint and British homeware brands. “Our aim is to follow the lead of The Royal Mint in supporting British manufacturing as a whole: these 886 partnerships demonstrate the value of producing beautiful pieces in the UK rather than relying on manufacturing overseas,” says Dominic Jones.

886.royalmint.com

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