The Cardiff City coin is less rare than Edinburgh, but still valuable, nonetheless. This forms part of a series depicting the UK’s four capital cities. When it comes to the highest-value £1 coins, some of the most scarce include the 2011 Edinburgh City £1, with only 935,000 in circulation. Other rare 50p coins include the 2011 Olympic series (such as Olympics football, wrestling and judo), as well as the highly collectable Peter Rabbit 2018 coins. Ms Morgan said: “At the peak of the hype surrounding its value, some coins were exchanging hands for hundreds of pounds.” It hit the headlines in 2014 when it was revealed as the most scarce 50p in circulation. It was released in 2009 to celebrate the 250 th anniversary of London’s gardens, but only 210,000 pieces were ever issued. One of the rarest is the Kew Gardens 50p.

Over the years, the 50p has grown to become Britain’s most collectable coin. But note that while errors can bump up the rarity value of a coin, they are typically worth more if they are in mint condition.” What are the rarest 50p coins? These include “strike errors” (such as the design being off-centre), “planchet errors”, (such as the wrong size blank metal disc), as well as “die errors” (resulting in coins with differences on their surfaces, such as how dates were punched).Ĭonsumer expert, Martyn James, said: “There’s huge demand for faulty coins on the secondary market. Rebecca Morgan, director of collector services at The Royal Mint, said: “If you’re looking to sell a coin on the secondary market and it has an unusually low mintage, it might sell for higher than its face value.”Įrrors can also make a coin more valuable.Ĭoins can get marked by a number of different production faults when they are minted.

Some of the rarest coins are those with low mintage numbers or errors. Irrespective of whether you’re an avid collector or simply wondering if the shrapnel in your wallet might be worth something, here’s some of the key things you need to know. If you’re not lucky enough to count any of the much sought-after Olympic coins among your haul, there’s still a chance you could make a few hundred pounds just from selling loose change. Kate Morgan, from Change Checker, said: “People have long loved collecting coins, but popularity sky-rocketed in 2011 with the 29-coin Olympic series was issued.” If you want to find out if you’re sitting on a pile which could make you a mint, the ‘Scarcity Index’ from Change Checker, is a useful resource which reveals Britain’s most sought after circulation coins.

Collectible 50p coins uk