There are thousands more coins just like it, and you might have one
A 50p coin has sold for more than £122 after sparking an eBay bidding war – and you could well have one tucked away in your wallet. Many coins are sought after by collectors, with some commanding extraordinary sums.
This particular piece stands amongst Britain’s rarest, and while it bears a face value of 50p, experts reckon the coin is worth around £145, indicating this eBay seller may have actually undersold theirs somewhat. The Royal Mint is believed to have minted approximately 210,000 of these coins, which were released in 2009 to commemorate the 250th anniversary of Kew Gardens.
The piece displays the iconic Chinese Pagoda from the gardens on one side and the late Queen’s portrait on the reverse. The coin was advertised on eBay with the heading “2009 KEW GARDENS 50 p BRITISH CIRCULATED COIN RARE”.
Bidding started at just 99p, but a 41-way auction frenzy pushed the price up and up, before the coin finally sold for £122.51. The buyer must also cover £3.75 for delivery.
Experts say there are still hundreds of thousands of Kew Gardens 50p coins in general circulation, meaning one might well be concealed among your loose change. Should you find one, the first step you should take is to examine the date on it.
This is due to the Royal Mint releasing another batch of these coins in 2019 to commemorate 50 years of the 50p, and this version typically doesn’t command as high a price. However, these coins have been known to fetch up to £80 on eBay, so it might still be worth putting it up for sale.