The truly unique ‘Bronze 20p’ error coin
ENTRIES TO THE ‘BRONZE 20P’ DRAW ARE NOW CLOSED
We love to hear when Change Checkers make a great coin discovery. We’re often contacted about mis-strikes which are interesting oddities but what really excites us are ‘error’ coins.
Genuine ‘error’ coins, especially those verified by The Royal Mint, are VERY rare and finding one is a goal for many change collectors.
So imagine our excitement when somebody contacted us after finding one of the rarest ‘error’ coins yet!
The ‘Bronze 20p’
Earlier this year, we were contacted by a collector named David Crosier who informed us he’d found a very rare ‘error’ coin.
A collector for over 50 years, David told us how he’d often look out for mis-strikes and ‘mules’ but there was something special about this particular coin. Initially he presumed the coin was plated but decided to send it to The Royal Mint to be certain.
The ‘Bronze 20p’ flanked by a 20p and 1p coin from the same year
After examination by x-ray fluorescence spectrometry, the coin was confirmed by The Royal Mint as an extremely sought-after minting ‘error’.
Somehow a 1p ‘blank’ found its way into the presses and a 20p was accidentally struck onto it.
The ‘Bronze 20p’ is significantly thinner than he standard 20p coin
Errors like this are extremely rare, in fact so rare we’ve never heard of another ‘Bronze 20p’, but The Royal Mint verified the authenticity of the coin with a letter and so here at Change Checker we knew this was an opportunity not to be missed.
Chris Barker, Assistant Curator for The Royal Mint Museum, confirmed the ‘Bronze 20p’ as a genuine ‘error’ coin
Now the great news… we want to give away the amazing ‘Bronze 20p’ to one lucky Change Checker!
And what’s more, you won’t just win the ‘Bronze 20p’, the coin is set in a specially designed presentation box alongside a Brilliant Uncirculated 1p and a Brilliant Uncirculated 20p coin from the same year, beautifully highlighting the minting error.
The ‘Bronze 20p’ is housed in a specially designed presentation box alongside a Brilliant Uncirculated 20p and 1p coin from the same year.
Your chance to win the coin
We’ll be selecting a lucky Change Checker to win this coin. If you’re already registered then we’ll automatically include you in the draw.
To register your free account, all you need to do is enter your email address and choose a password.
ENTRIES FOR THE ‘BRONZE 20P’ DRAW ARE NOW CLOSED
Full Terms and Conditions can be found below.
Good luck!
Terms & Conditions
- All registered members of changechecker.org at midnight on 7th December 2017 will be automatically entered into the prize draw. No purchase is necessary to register.
- The draw will take place on 11th December 2017 and the winner will be notified on that day by email to their registered changechecker.org email address.
- The winner will receive the “Bronze 20p”. There is no cash alternative.
- Participants agree to meet reasonable requests to assist publicity.
- The prize draw is promoted by The Westminster Collection / Change Checker, trading divisions of 288 Group Ltd.
- Employees of 288 Group and their families are not eligible to enter.
It’s not just UK coins that could turn up in your change…
Coins from Crown dependencies and overseas British territories can sometimes make an unexpected appearance in our change.
They are identical in size, shape and weight to UK denominations which means they often find their way into tills and vending machines undetected.
Finding one in your change can be an annoyance on one hand as technically the coins are not legal tender in the UK. On the other hand, from a collecting point of view, new and interesting designs are always a bonus!
Here’s a look at our top 5 favourite coin designs that have been issued by Crown dependencies and overseas British territories since decimalisation:
Guernsey Freesia Flowers 50p’s were only issued in sets in 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990 and 1992. They were issued into circulation in 1997.
This beautiful 50p from Guernsey features two crossed freesia flowers with ‘FIFTY PENCE’ and the date at the top and ’50’ below the design.
The obverse features David Maklouf’s portrait of Queen Elizabeth II with the lettering ‘Bailiwick of Guernsey’ above, and also a small Guernsey Coat of Arms to the left.
This addition on the obverse makes the Guernsey 50p stand out when compared to UK 50p coins.
This 50p has the pre-1997 specifications.
Guernsey Lily £1 Coin
Guernsey Lily £1 issued in 1981.
The Guernsey Lily £1 features the island’s Lily on the reverse, and the Guernsey Coat of Arms on the obverse.
This unusual obverse without the Queen’s head makes this particular coin stand out amongst other £1 coins, and makes it sought after by collectors.
Along with the UK, Guernsey withdrew their round £1 coins from circulation in October 2017.
Isle of Man Tower of Refuge £2
Isle of Man Tower of Refuge £2 issued in 2017.
The Tower of Refuge is an important landmark on the Isle of Man. It was built in 1832 upon the reef on orders of Sir William Hillary, founder of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.
The impressive tower with birds flying above it features on the reverse of this Isle of Man £2 coin. The obverse carries a new effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Jody Clark, this effigy being reserved for the Crown dependencies and Commonwealth countries.
Gibraltar Candytuft Flowers 50p
The Gibraltar Candy Tuft Flowers 50p issued in 1988 is 7 times rarer than the 2009 Kew Gardens 50p.
This 50p features the denomination surrounded by a crown of Gibraltar Candytuft flowers, known as ‘Iberis Gibraltarica’.
Iberis Gibraltarica is the national flower of Gibraltar and is the symbol of the Upper Rock Nature Reserve which covers 40% of the country’s land area. Gibraltar is the only place in Europe where it is found growing in the wild.
With a mintage of just 30,000 in 1988, this 50p is 7 times rarer than the UK’s rarest 50p so is particularly scarce and sought after amongst collectors. This 50p has the pre-1997 specifications.
Jersey Resolute £1
The Jersey Resolute £1 was issued in 1994, 1997,1998, 2003, 2005 and 2006.
The Resolute vessel was built in 1877 in Jersey by Thomas Le Huguet and was owned by Captain George Noel. The ship was used for trade before it was wrecked during a hurricane on 29th August 1905 at Friars Cove off Newfoundland.
The design depicts a two-mastered topsail schooner Resolute ship and was first issued into circulation in Jersey in 1994.
To ensure their currency would not be left vulnerable to counterfeiters, Jersey withdrew their round £1 coins from circulation in October 2017.
So have you come across any of these coin designs in your change or do you already collect coins from other countries? Let us know via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram or leave us a comment below.
With a much lower population than the UK, some of these coins that can be found in your change can be extremely rare, so it’s worth keeping hold of them.
The end of an era for Belgium’s Royal Mint
After 185 years of production, The Royal Mint of Belgium is set to close forever.
The Royal Mint of Belgium struck its first coins in 1832, just two years after the institution was founded, but the long standing mint will cease operations forever on January 1st 2018.
From the end of the 1990’s the Belgian Mint started producing euro coins ready for the switch from the Belgian Franc to the euro at the start of 2002. And the nation considers itself one of the pioneers with regards to the introduction of the euro as it was Belgian chief engraver Luc Luycks who designed the obverse side of all euro coins.
Unfortunately the Federal Government feels it has become too expensive for the Royal Mint to carry on producing coins itself and has decided that a private company should produce Belgian euro coins. And with more and more people paying electronically there is less and less need for coins.
Instead, the task of striking coins is being outsourced to a private company in an effort to save money.
The Royal Belgium Mint caused a stir back in 2015 when they issued a €2.50 coin to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo after France forced it to scrap a €2 coin with the same purpose.
Paris objected to the Belgian coin, commemorating the French emperor’s defeat by British and Prussian forces, branding the commemoration of Waterloo as a “symbol that is negative” which would “undermine the unity of the Eurozone.”
Belgium was forced to get rid of about 180,000 €2 coins that had already been minted after Paris sent a letter saying they could cause an “unfavourable reaction in France”.
But Belgium managed to skirt the French protests by taking advantage of a European rule stating that Eurozone countries are permitted to approve their own coins without approval of other member states, providing the new denomination as an irregular one. In this case the irregular denomination was €2.50.
The Royal Belgium Mint strikes more than 40 million coins a year but the final batch of commemorative coins have now been minted, ready to close its doors in just over a month.
The last coins ever struck at The Royal Belgian Mint – issued to celebrate the 200th Anniversary of Ghent University.
The last coins ever struck at The Royal Belgian Mint were the special €2 coins issued to celebrate the 200th Anniversary of Ghent University.
The special coin features an engraved logo of the University of Ghent with the dates 1817-2017. The Belgian mintmark, a helmeted head of the archangel Michel, as well as the mintmaster mark, the armorial bearings of Herzele city, are located respectively on the right and on the left of issuing country indication ‘BE’ (meaning Belgium). The12 stars of the European flag are represented on the external ring of the coin.
Own the last coin struck at the Royal Mint of Belgium – limited availability
We have been able to secure a very limited number of the last ever coins struck at the Royal Mint of Belgium Mint
They are available now for just £15.95. Click here to reserve yours >>