Cat no. 225333

The Empire's Money Maker (hand coloured version)

Running time5:00 Silent c.1905 City of London

Loading the player ...

Hertfordshire film pioneer Arthur Melbourne-Cooper documents the making of coins at the Royal Mint.

Genre:

ActualityDocumentary

Arthur Melbourne Cooper takes his camera inside Britain's Royal Mint in the City of London, depicting the process of 'money making' from beginning to end. Gold bullion is weighed, melted and rolled, before coins are punched out in rapid succession in a largely automated process. The coins are checked, counted and sacked ready for transport to the bank, and the film concludes with views of the Royal Mint museum and the comparison of a large die and the finished coin.

This version is distinguished by a short segment, in which the pouring of molten gold into bars is rendered with a fiery flourish of hand-painted red.

Featured Organisations:

The Royal Mint

Featured Buildings:

The Royal Mint, London

Alpha Trading Company

Arthur Melbourne-Cooper