A COLLECTOR has revealed five rare coins worth up to £254 – that could be lurking in your change.
Though these coins appear to be worth a meagre 50p at face value, they all feature a rare error or oddity – that could spell big earnings for their owners.
Another rare 50p, the 2009 Athletics 50p, recently sold for £208.72[/caption]
Meanwhile, a Benjamin Bunny error 50p was snapped up for £57.43[/caption]
The expert, who goes by Coin Collecting Wizard on TikTok, started with the 2017 error Benjamin Bunny 50p.
This could be worth upwards of £30 – with one recently selling for £57.43 on eBay.
The collector explained: “The 2017 Benjamin Bunny 50p is usually just worth face value unless you have a rare rotation error version.
“The error Benjamin Bunny coin has the Queen‘s head facing the wrong direction.
“When a coin is flipped over, the Queen’s head should be facing to the left, but on a rotation error coin, this would be different. Around £30 you can get for this coin.”
The coin was one of four to be released in 2017 in honour of the famed author Beatrix Potter.
Coins featuring Peter Rabbit, Tom Kitten and Jeremy Fisher were also released as part of the collection.
The self-proclaimed coin wizard then moved on to the Aquatic 50p error coin.
Only 600 examples of this misprinted coin were ever produced – making it ultra-valuable.
Coin Collecting Wizard said: “If you find an Aquatic 50p error coin with lines over the face, it could be worth a small fortune.
“A small handful of this original design was put into circulation but it was then adapted very quickly to show the face above the water.
With so few of the original design out there, it’s meant the coin’s value has been pushed up significantly.”
Previously, these coins have historically landed more than £2,000 on eBay – but a recent version sold for a respectable £245.
Up next, is the 2009 Athletics 50p – originally designed for the 2012 London Olympics as part of a Blue Peter competition.
The winning design was created by Florence Jackson, a 9-year-old from Bristol, in 2009.
Her depiction of a high jumper mid-flight was selected from an impressive 17,000 entries.
The design went into mass production in 2011, with millions minted, but an earlier version, dating from 2009, is much rarer.
The collector said: “Around 2.2 million of the Athletics 50p was minted and released into circulation in 2011.
“But this earlier version was minted in 2009 and is more valuable to collectors.
“If you have this version dated 2009, then you have found it, and can sell for £250 plus.”
Just last week, on February 21, one of these coins sold for £208.72 on eBay.
Could I be quids-in with a rare error coin?
Often times error coins will sell for a lot more than their face value.
In April a rare £1 sold for £155 because it had upside down writing on its side.
Plus in February last year, another mis-struck £1 coin was sold for £112 as it had an error that left the silver-coloured inner part of the pound looking like a fried egg.
Error coins are still legal tender – so long as the original coin is still in circulation too.
That means you could easily come across one in your change.
Get an imperfect coin verified by the Royal Mint, and you could then place a value on yours if you come to sell.
It will also let you know if your change is legitimate or not as unfortunately there are many fake coins in circulation.
Online tools from change experts like Coin Hunter are helpful to see how much it could be worth too.
Plus, the number of bids on the listing can help you establish that the coin is the real deal as well.
The Benjamin Bunny error coin only had two bids placed on the listing, so many coin experts will be sceptical of whether it actually sold for the price it said it had.
Also remember that if you’re selling on eBay, you need to keep in mind that a buyer could pull out as well which means it won’t have sold for the price that it says it has.
Rare coins and valuable notes – is yours worth a mint?
- Five rarest coins – do you have one?
- The 13 most valuable £2 coins in circulation
- How valuable are the rarest £1 coins?
- Most rare and valuable 50p coins in circulation
- Rare and most valuable 20p coins that could be worth up to £750
- Rarest 10p coins in circulation
- Rare 2p coins revealed
- How to check if you have a rare and valuable banknote
Coin Collecting Wizard shared the tips to his TikTok account[/caption]
