A SPECIFIC animal on a 50p coin makes it 50 times more valuable – and could be lurking in your change.
A lucky owner of the coin has listed it on eBay, and it’s attracting some big bids.
The Royal Mint, the official body making British coins, regularly puts limited edition pieces into circulation.
Because they are limited in supply, finding one is a rarity – sending its value skyrocketing.
In this case, a 2023 King Charles 50p coin featuring an Atlantic Salmon is up for £26 – more than 50 times the 50p value.
It’s received 21 bids, with buyers given until Thursday afternoon to place an offer.
The coin has only been in circulation since November last year, making it hot property.
It’s one of eight new special varieties released by the Royal Mint, reflecting the King’s passion for conservation and the natural world.
The Atlantic Salmon coin has been dubbed by the online coin site Copes Coins as one of the “most talked about coins in the coin community”, RedditchAdvisor reports.
The coin is marked with an engraving of salmon fish jumping out of Atlantic ocean water.
A spokesperson for Copes Coins said: “The current mintage rumours estimate that only 500,000 of these coins were released into general circulation in November 2023.
“Since then, these coins have become much harder to find in your change.
“And prices on online marketplaces such as eBay and Amazon have continued to rise, fuelling the speculation that the 2023 Atlantic Salmon 50p is to become one of the rarest coins to enter circulation in the last 15 years.”
The coin is only cast into circulation when there is demand from banks and post offices, another factor increasing its rarity.
But the recent salmon sale is nothing compared to what coins can potentially attract.
A collection of coins were released in celebration of the London 2012 Olympics, for example, featuring various sports.
The Aquatics 50p is decorated with a goggle-wearing swimmer moving through water, but 600 of the coins were made with a distorted design.
The lines of the water completely covered the swimmer’s face, making them incredibly rare and worth a pretty penny 12 years later.
There was a bidding war on one of the 50ps on eBay, which have been dubbed Water Lines Over Face coins.
History buffs fought over the rare coin, with the highest bidder parting with a mind-boggling £3,766.
IF you’re lucky enough to pick up a rare coin in your spare change, it could go for hundreds of pounds depending on how rare it is.
You should check how much the coin is selling for on eBay.
Search the full name of the coin, select the “sold” listing and then toggle the search to “highest value”.
It will give you an idea of the amount of money that the coin is going for.
But remember, a buyer could always pull out so the coin may not have gone for the price it says it has.
And watch out for fakes too.
You can also use an online tool that gives you an estimate of how much it could be worth on eBay, as well as any other rare coins you have.
Coin Hunter gives you an estimated valuation of your coin based on the average of the most recent sales, as well as a range of how much you can expect it to fetch.
Plus Change Checker’s Scarcity Index will give you a good idea of how rare a coin is.
