Posts by Change Checker
Why we wouldn’t pay £120 (or even £24 for that matter) for the Kew Gardens 50p
How much is it worth to you?
After revealing some months ago that the Kew Gardens 50p is the rarest of all the 50p coins currently in circulation, the Royal Mint has successfully pushed the story out into the national press.
The resultant hype has seen prices sky-rocket. The Guardian initially reported prices being paid of £24 for the coin but before long the Daily Mirror and other news sources were quoting prices of £120 from e-Bay.
Incredibly, as we write, an original Brilliant Uncirculated version in a Royal Mint presentation pack (not actually one of the coins that went into circulation) is currently listed with bids of £310 on e-Bay.
But let’s step back from the hype for a minute and consider the facts:
- Yes, with just 210,000 pieces ever released into circulation this is a very scarce coin.
One listing on eBay has reached an unbelievable £310.
- That does mean that there is only one coin for every 300 people in the UK.
- Collectors will have taken some out of circulation.
But most of the coins will still be in circulation and remain so for many years.
25% of Change Checkers own the Kew Gardens 50p
In fact if you keep your eyes peeled as a Change Checker, you’ve still got fair chance of owning one. Amongst 50p Change Checkers about a quarter have Kew Gardens listed in their collection and we’re sure they haven’t all paid £120 for their coins.
So what to do if you’re impatient to own one. Well don’t panic and pay today’s prices, which are hugely inflated by the media hype. Bide your time a little and look around.
And, in case you really want one now, we’ve got 5 in stock, which we’re selling for only £17.50 each. If you’re interested just fill in the form below.
So there are two morals to the Kew Gardens story:
- You never know what treasure’s in your pocket
- Don’t believe everything you read in the papers.
Happy Change Checking.
Read about the 50p coin that is even rarer than Kew Gardens
Register your interest in a Kew Gardens 50p for £17.50
Enter your name and contact details below before 28th February to register your interest in one of five Kew Gardens 50ps we have available. If we receive more than five enquiries before the closing date we will draw five people at random and contact them directly with further details.
Sorry now closed
The story behind Trinity House
The UK’s General Lighthouse Authority, Trinity House, was immortalised on a UK £2 coin in 2014 to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the organisation.
Since being granted a Royal Charter by King Henry VIII in 1514, Trinity House has provided maritime safety on the UK’s waterways and coastal areas by providing nearly 11,000 aids to navigation ranging from lighthouses, buoys and beacons to satellite navigation technology.
Image Credit: National Maritime Museum from Greenwich, via Wikimedia Commons
Each year the Trinity House Maritime Charity donates around £4 million to cadet training schemes, welfare provisions for retired mariners and educational programmes teaching safety at sea skills. As the UK’s largest-endowed maritime charity, the Trinity House Maritime Charity supports more than 21 different charities.
Did you know these lighthouse facts?
The Trinity House £2 through the lens
The reverse of the coin, designed by engravers Joe Whitlock Blundell and David Eccles, depicts a lighthouse lens shining bright – an enduring symbol of the seas and the safety which Trinity House continues to provide. The years 1514 and 2014 feature either side of the lighthouse and the coin’s edge inscription reads SERVING THE MARINER.
With 95% of British imports still arriving by sea, the lighthouses of Trinity House are as important today as ever. This was the very first time a lighthouse had been the subject of a commemorative coin, and it’s a well-deserved tribute to a long-serving and truly British institution.
3,705,000 Trinity House £2 coins are in circulation, have you ever found one in your change? Or perhaps you were lucky enough to secure one in Brilliant Uncirculated quality or precious metal when they were first issued? Let us know in the comments!
Find out more about your coins
If you’re interested in coin collecting, our Change Checker web app is completely free to use!
I’ve just been checking your coins are up to scratch
I had the pleasure on Tuesday of attending the opening ceremony of the Trial of the Pyx in the glorious surroundings of Goldsmiths’ Hall near St Paul’s Cathedral.
The earliest trials were held in Westminster Hall, but it was Queen Elizabeth I who gave responsibility of the Trial to the Goldsmiths’ Company, and in 1870 it was moved to Goldsmiths Hall where it has remained ever since.
It is the oldest judicial procedure in the country and has taken place every year since 1282 to check that newly minted coins are within the legal limits for metallic composition, weight and size. If you’re wondering what relevance ‘Pyx’ has to coins, the name refers to the wooden boxes which transport the coins and derives from the Pyx Chamber in Westminster Abbey where the coinage of the realm was kept prior to each trial.
A form of coin testing was undertaken in Saxon times, but it was during the reign of Henry II that regular testing was introduced following complaints about the quality of coins from the Royal Mint.
The Opening Ceremony
This first phase of the Trial is the counting and weighing of coins brought to the hall by the Royal Mint in the ‘Pyx’ boxes, and is open to around a hundred public spectators.
It is presided over by the senior judge in the Court of Justice, the Queen’s Remembrancer, in his full judicial attire and supported by his two clerks. It’s a very formal affair as you would expect, and from the point the Queen’s Remembrancer enters the room, the Trial has the status as a Court of Law. All jury members are required to take an oath holding the Holy Bible, and photography is strictly forbidden.
The Jury will usually consist of at least six assayers from the Company of Goldsmiths who will test that the coins are within the statutory limits for metallic composition, weight and size.
Following a short speech and some amusing comments from the Queen’s Remembrancer, court is adjourned until the start of May and the counting process can begin.
The jury is formed from a selection of Liverymen and more senior figures of the Goldmiths’ Company, and they have the responsibility of selecting the coins provided by the Royal Mint ready for further inspection. The coins provided to them have been randomly selected during the production process to give the fairest representation of the coins which we find in our change.
After this selection process, the nominated coins are taken away for weighing and the Assay Office (conveniently located next door) will carry out detailed checks to ensure that the metallic content for each coin is as it should be. The Court meets again in May for the second phase of the trial, and the Assay Office will deliver their verdict to the Judge.
The oldest form of consumer protection
In the earlier days when coins were made of actual silver alloys, it was vital that they contained the correct composition of metal to ensure they held their true worth. And although coins today aren’t struck from precious metals, a formal certification of our currency is still as important as ever, and the trial is in effect the oldest form of consumer protection in existence.
In modern times the coin production process has become far more reliable, and there hasn’t been a failure in the verdict for many years. Despite this, it was a privilege to witness such a historic and traditional form of quality control being used to this day for the coins in our change, and I will report back with the verdict in about 12 weeks time!
If you’re interested in collecting the UK’s coinage you can find, collect and swap all ourcirculating commemorative coins with the Change Checker Album, click here for details…