The idea was to create a commemorative coin in celebration of the work of HG Wells, the British writer, historian and sociologist best known for the novels “The War of the Worlds” and “The Invisible Man.”
But the two-pound coin unveiled by the Royal Mint in Britain this week has irritated some Wells fans who have quickly noticed what they described as flaws and depictions in the design of the coin, inspired by the authors’ books.
The Mars machine that Wells described in ‘The War of the Worlds’ as ‘a monstrous tripod, taller than many houses’, apparently has four legs instead of three. And the image of the invisible man on the coin has the character wearing a high hat and not the ‘wide-brimmed hat’ that Wells described in his book.
The errors and the response of Wells lovers were reported by The Guardian.
‘Can I just notice that the big walking machine on the coin has four legs? Four Legs, ”Holly Humphries, digital artist, said on Twitter.
Humphries, from Oxfordshire, England, said she noticed the mistake Monday, the day the coin was announced by the Royal Mint, when she read about it in an online forum dedicated to ‘The War of the Worlds’.
“The tripod has been an iconic, famous thing in fiction for over 120 years,” she said in an interview Tuesday, “and to make the mistake shows an incredible lack of familiarity with the work, especially if you try to honor the author with such a coin. ‘
Patrick Parrinder, president of the HG Wells Society in London and a writer who wrote about Wells, also noticed the error.
“Three legs good, four legs bad,” Mr Parrinder said of the tripod. “It’s a shame the artist didn’t pick it out.”
Adam Roberts, Vice President of the Wells Society and Professor at Royal Holloway, University of London, said on Twitter, “Not only does Wells’ tripods * have three legs, Griffin, his invisible husband, does not wear a top hat.” The character’s face, he added, was tied under a ‘broad hat’.
“So it’s two for two,” he said.
Wells, considered an outstanding literary figure of his time, is best known for his science fiction novels, some of which have been adapted into films. He died in 1946 at the age of 79.
In announcing the coin, The Royal Mint said it “celebrates the imagination and exploratory thoughts of a man who helped shape the world we live in.”
A Royal Mint spokesman said in a statement on Wednesday that he was “working with leading designers around the world to create art on the unique canvas of a coin.”
“We encourage them to be creative and discerning in their response to the assignment,” she said. “When we developed a design for the HG Wells coin, we asked artists to consider his life and his work, to ensure that the coin would be immediately recognizable and use the space to the best of £ 2.”
The coin was designed by Chris Costello, a graphic designer and illustrator in Boston. It depicts the four-legged alien machine with the invisible man in the foreground. The footage of the coin also contains a partial Roman numeral clock, a nod to ‘The Time Machine’, said Mr. Costello said on his website.
“The characters in War of the Worlds have been portrayed many times, and I wanted to create something original and contemporary,” he said. Costello said in a statement released by the Royal Mint. ‘My design is inspired by a variety of machines featured in the book, including tripods and handling machines with five joint legs and multiple attachments. ”
He added it “The final design combines several stories into one stylized and unified composition that is distinctive” of Wells’ work “and fits the unique canvas of a coin.”
On his website, Mr. Costello also said he wears a high hat because it “can be easily recognized as a Victorian era as opposed to the futuristic machine in the background.”
The coin, which on the other hand has a statue of Queen Elizabeth II in profile, will be issued later this year, 75 years after Wells’ death, the Royal Mint said on Tuesday. It is part of the Royal Mint’s annual set, a collection of coins commemorating 2021 anniversaries, including the Queen’s 95th birthday.