General info
The story of the undated 20p
It’s regarded by many as the Holy Grail of change collecting, and back in 2008, the undated 20p saga encouraged an entire country to start carefully checking their coins. In fact plenty of collectors are still doing just that in the hope of finding one.
Online sellers have set prices sky high, with one seller asking for an astonishing £10m for the the coin! However, although these chancers are unlikely to see their coin actually selling for that price, some people have been willing to pay in the thousands for the chance to own one of these rare coins.
The story of the coin
If you’re not familiar with the story of the undated 20p, this is it:
In 2008, the reverse of each denomination from 1p to £1 was redesigned by Matthew Dent to feature a different part of the Royal Arms Shield. The 20p had previously included the date on the reverse, but with the entire face of the coin now devoted to the new design, the Royal Mint produced a new die with the date on the obverse (Queen’s head) side.
However, when the new Royal Shield 20p coins were struck for circulation, the old die was accidentally used, meaning a batch was issued with no date on either side of the coin.
Coins with mismatched sides like these are known in the collecting world as ‘mules’ – the name deriving from the hybrid offspring of a horse and a donkey. Mule coins are always highly coveted, but they rarely receive the kind of mainstream media attention afforded to the undated 20p.
The undated 20p was the first coin issued for circulation in over 300 years without a date on either side
The first for 300 years
The undated 20p became the first coin in over 300 years to enter circulation without a date, and when the story broke in the press, it caused a frenzy not just in the collecting world but amongst the general public who realised they stood just as good a chance as anyone of pulling one out of their change.
Estimates have varied over the years but The Royal Mint confirmed in a statement that no more than 250,000 coins made it into circulation.
Various stories in the media helped to fuel wild estimates of the value of an undated 20p
Stories from numerous media outlets fuelled rumours about the coin’s value. Experts suggest that the faulty 20ps could be worth £50 each, however sellers on eBay listed the coins for thousands, with one lucky seller fetching a colossal £7,100 (35,500 times face value).
Of course, a coin with such a high mintage could never really be worth that sort of figure, and in recent years the average selling price for an undated 20p has levelled off. Nowadays they normally sell for around the £50 mark which I’m sure you’ll agree is still not a bad return for a 20p coin!
In terms of rarity, you are approximately twice as likely to find an undated 20p as you are the famous Kew Gardens 50p. However, ordinarily an undated 20p will sell for more. But why?
The reason quite simply is that everyone loves a good story.
The fact that the coin only exists by way of a freak accident really adds to its appeal, and makes it a collector’s item in every sense of the term. So remember to have a good look at your 20p next time you’ve got one in your hand. A flip of your coin could be worth a lot more than you thought.
If you’re interested in coin collecting, our Change Checker web app is completely free to use and allows users to:
– Find and identify the coins in their pocket
– Collect and track the coins they have
– Swap their spare coins with other Change Checkers
Sign up today at: www.changechecker.org/app
Belgium wins Battle of Waterloo with new €2.50 coin
In March we shared a story on our Facebook page about a new €2 coin proposed by Belgium to commemorate the Battle of Waterloo in this, its bicentenary year. France made it very clear they would not welcome any such design, branding the commemoration of Waterloo as a “symbol that is negative” which would “undermine the unity of the Eurozone.”
This caused more than a little grievance with Belgium, who had already struck around 180,000 €2 coins ready for circulation, prior to receiving the veto letter from Paris.
Now, in an unprecedented and surprisingly provocative move, Belgium has moved to defy France and issue a new coin which takes 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 is an irregular one.
The story of the new €2.50 coin was widely covered in the media
In this case the irregular denomination is €2.50.
The reverse design features the Lion’s Mound monument which currently stands at the Waterloo battlefield, as well as lines indicating the position of the troops.
Napoleon Bonaparte’s defeat and ultimate exile in 1815 still leaves a bitter taste with the French, but Belgium have denied acting antagonistically.
Belgian finance minister, Johan Van Overtveldt, defended the new coin by emphasising the magnitude of the occasion; “There’s been no battle in in recent history as important as Waterloo, or indeed one that captures the imagination in the same way.”
Regardless of intent, the new coin has caused quite a stir, with the story being picked up by the worldwide media.
There are only 70,000 new coins which will all be legal tender in Belgium, but it is thought that collectors will be very quick to snap them up considering the controversy over their release.
** Unfortunately this has now SOLD OUT **
LIMITED AVAILABILITY
We have been able to secure a very limited number of the new Waterloo €2.50 coin from Europe.
They are available now for just £9.99, however, we are expecting them to sell out in record time – so please be quick to reserve yours!
Did you know this £2 coin celebrates VE Day?
‘The greatest outburst of joy in the history of mankind’ was how Winston Churchill described it. After six long years, the War in Europe was finally over, and all hostilities were to cease after midnight on 8th May 1945, VE Day. Jubilant crowds sang and danced in the streets in celebration of the news.
The VE Day 60th Anniversary £2 features St Paul’s Cathedral
It’s a day that will always be celebrated in Britain, and there’s already a coin in our change to commemorate VE Day, but it often goes overlooked.
The chances are you’ve seen this £2 coin in your change before. In fact, it is the most common commemorative £2 coin design with a mintage of over 10 million. It was issued in 2005 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of VE Day, but it is often mistaken as a tribute to St Paul’s Cathedral which features so prominently on the reverse.
But there is a story behind this striking choice of design.
The war brought sheer devastation to British cities, but while London burned during the Blitz bombings, St Paul’s Cathedral miraculously escaped destruction. As banks and offices were destroyed around it, the famous domed roof seemed, as described by the Times, ‘to ride the sea of fire like a great ship’.
The image of St Paul’s Cathedral came to be a symbol of hope and inspiration to a nation torn apart by war.
“In Victory: Magnanimity. In Peace: Goodwill”
The edge inscription of this coin meanwhile reads IN VICTORY: MAGNANIMITY. IN PEACE: GOODWILL which is an excerpt taken from the famous ‘moral’ which prefaces Churchill’s history of the Second World War.
The combination of powerful words from Britain’s great wartime leader and the iconic symbol of St Paul’s Cathedral make this coin a very fitting tribute for VE Day, and a fine example of the artistry which British coins are famous for.
Do you have this coin in your Change Checker collection?
You can find this and many other commemorative £2 coins in the Change Checker Shop
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