Coin Collector

There’s a growing number of military-themed British coins which honour those brave men and women who have served in the Armed Forces. In 2006 we saw two 50p coins issued on similar subjects. The first depicts a Victoria Cross medal with the date ‘29 JAN 1856’ in the centre of the reverse of the Cross, the letters VC to the right and the value below. Collector notes The Royal Mint’s mintage figures for this time were particularly high and so the 2006 50p coins are not really rare. Still, it’s a nice addition to a collection and would fit very well within a war or military-themed collection. The second Victoria Cross 50p features a more engaging image, representing the bravery and heroism often seen in times of conflict. We see a soldier carrying a wounded comrade with an outline of the Victoria Cross surrounded by a sunburst effect in the background. Collector notes Again, a high mintage means this coins can be obtained for as little £1.50 as from sites such as eBay. Not great news if you have one to sell, but encouraging for collectors wanting to add one to their coins. Once again the Mint teamed up with Royal Mail to create a ‘coin cover’ featuring the two coins and six stamps that were issued around the same time to mark the anniversary. These covers are beautifully produced and usually sell for around £10 to £15. Did you know can earn themselves a ‘Collector Activity Badge’? No doubt many have done so by focussing on coins, and surely they would have added this 50p to their collection. Featuring a ‘fleur-de-lis’ superimposed over a globe and surrounded by the famous motto ‘Be prepared’, the coin was issued 100 years after the Scouting movement was founded by Robert Baden-Powell. Collector notes This design was reissued in 2019 as part of the 50p fifty years celebrations, but the later coin was not issued into general circulation. In 2008 artist Matthew Dent won a competition to redesign the country’s coinage. The design he came up with actually stretches across several coins to form the Royal Arms. The new 50p features elements of the third and fourth quarterings. Together with the lower values (1p, 5p, 10p, and 20p) the coins form the Royal Arms (try it with your loose change next time you’re in the pub!) Collector notes Take a look at the mintage figures detailed below and the 2017 coin should stick out like a sore thumb, it’s clearly the most scarce of these coins. 2006 - 150th Anniversary of the institution of the Victoria Cross 2007 - Centenary of the Foundation of the Scouting Movement 2006 - 150th Anniversary of the institution of the Victoria Cross Mintage: 12,087,000 Approx. value: £1 Mintage: 7,710,750 Approx. value: £2 Mintage: 10,000,500 Approx. value: £1.25 2008 to date - Royal Arms Mintage figures: 2008 - 22,747,000 2012 - 32,300,030 2013 - 10,301,000 2014 - 49,001,000 2015 - 20,101,000 Approx. values: 50p 2017 - 1,800,000 Approx. value: £3 You may have seen news about other 50p coins, including those depicting The Gruffalo and The Snowman, or honouring Professor Stephen Hawking. These are more beautifully produced coins to add to your collection, but do be aware that The Royal Mint also issue coins just for collectors, and so they are not always entered into general circulation, so it’s unlikely you’ll ever see one in your loose change. For these types of coins, the Mint usually issue a Brilliant Uncirculated (BU) edition of the coin which costs £10, together with other limited edition versions. Uncirculated 50p coins