Coin that looks exactly like a 20p but is actually SUPER RARE 25p could be hiding in your change and worth £700

YOU could have an ultra-rare 25p coin that could be worth hundreds of pounds lurking in your change.

The coin is the same shape as a 20p so could easily be mistaken for the common silver piece.

The 25p coin has a shield on one side and the Sovereign’s Orb on the other.

It was made by the Royal Mint but at the time, authorities had not decided whether the new coin would be worth 20p or 25p.

Coin experts call experimental coins like this one a “trial piece” or a “pattern coin”.

“Experimental coin” and “Royal Mint trial” are printed onto the coin.

Now one of them is set to go under the hammer for a whopping £700.

The rare coin was created in 1981 and was used to demonstrate the concept to officials and may have been sent out to businesses that handle lots of cash to try out.

It is thought that no more than 50 of these 25p trial pieces survive.

That makes it significantly rarer than the famously valuable rare Kew Gardens 50p, of which 210,000 were made.

Since only a handful are made, they are sought after by serious collectors looking for real rarities.

One of these 25p coins is now about to go on sale and is expected to fetch between £500 and £700.

It will be sold through an online sale on September 25 at RWB Auctions in Royal Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire.

The collector’s item was found in a pile of change several years ago by the owner who kept it in a jewellery box ever since.

A coin expert at RWB Auctions, said: “This is a fascinating piece not just for the rarity but as a glimpse of what our currency could have been.

“20p coins are a fixture in our change now, but the Royal Mint seems to have experimented with various ideas before they settled on the seven-sided coin we all recognise.”

The coin will be sold as part of a specialist sale of historic and modern currency.

The auction house has previously sold a scarce Lord Kitchener £2 for £1,000 and an unusual Olympics 50p for £1,500.

The expert added: “This trial coin could easily be mistaken for a 20p, but we are certain it will sell for a lot more than that.

“While there are not many of these experimental 25p pieces out there, it’s worth checking your change to ensure you haven’t been handed a rare and valuable coin.”

How to spot rare coins and banknotes

Rare coins and notes are highly desirable among specialist collectors and could make you a mint if you find one.

Some of the most in-demand pieces can sell for hundreds of pounds.

If you spot an unusual-looking coin in your change, keep hold of it.

Then look up exactly how rare it is. Usually, the rarer it is, the more valuable it is.

You can find out what coins are rare and how they look on The Royal Mint’s website.

You can also determine the coin and how common it is by looking at the scarcity index on specialist coin collector sites.

To work out how valuable it might be, take a look at similar coins that have recently sold on eBay or even at auction.

Remember to look at “sold listings” to be sure that the coin has sold for the specified amount rather than just been listed.

It’s not just coins, rare notes can sell for multiple times their face value.

This includes fivers, rare £10 notes as well as higher denominations.

One of the main distinguishing marks of a rare note is the serial number.

These numbers can be found on the side with the Monarch’s face, just under the value of £10 in the corner of the note.

Low serial numbers or something quite quirky can see you cash in thousands.

For example, one seller bagged £3,600 after spotting a specific serial number relating to the year Jane Austen was born on one of their notes.

You can check if your notes are worth anything on eBay, just tick “completed and sold items” and filter by the highest value.

It will give you an idea of what people are willing to pay for some notes.

But do bear in mind that yours is only worth what someone else is willing to pay for it.