For quite a few years now there has been a lot of hype regarding the potential values of Modern UK Commemorative coins. When we mention the term Modern, we are specifically talking about the 1980’s onwards up until the present day.
Before the 1980’s Commemorative coins were few and far between. They normally came in the form of a Crown, either costing 5/- in £.s.d, or 25p in Decimal money, later to be raised to £5 to cover the increase in production costs. These Commemorative Crowns were usually reserved for major Royal events such as Coronations, Silver Jubilees, or landmark birthdays. Due to the popularity of the Royal Family they were produced and sold in their millions and so consequently today, are only worth around their original Face Value, mainly because when produced they were not intended for circulation, but to be kept as souvenirs and so there are still many millions in existence.
Moving forward to the 1980’s the Royal Mint undertook a programme of producing Commemorative coins for arguably events of a lesser importance. It seemed as though they wanted to compete with the Royal Mail who traditionally were allowed to produce many Commemorative sets each year marking Birth and Death anniversaries of notable UK figures, Sporting events, popular themes like Birds/Animals, Trains, Star Wars, Harry Potter etc.
It all started quite slowly in 1986 with The Commonwealth Games in Scotland when a £2 coin was issued but by the time the 2000’s came along there were several different Commemoratives produced each year, mainly for the 50p and £2 coins.
As the majority of these coins did enter normal circulation (except for Proof versions in Silver or Gold that we will come to later) it became a popular pastime to collect the different types available that could quite easily turn up in your loose change. However, the numbers of each Commemorative entering circulation varied usually between 3 million and 10 million, which are clearly big quantities and so again they will not be worth much more than their original Face Value, especially if they show signs of circulation with scratches or dents. Occasionally, there would be an issue that would have a significantly lower mintage – for example the 2009 Kew Gardens 50p where there were only 210,000 minted. Given the number of collectors worldwide this represents a very low mintage and consequently this coin is highly sought after. But this coin is the exception really. Some coins have a mintage of 1 million or just below and will be worth a few pounds but not the Hundreds or sometimes Thousands of pounds asked on eBay and similar online auction sites.
The hype started around the time of the 2012 Olympics. The Royal Mint produced a series of 29 50p coins depicting different events found at the Olympics. The quantities minted did vary but were mainly between 1.5 million and 2 million. Clearly with such a momentous event taking place in our country everyone was seeking souvenirs and mementoes. The race was on to complete the set of 29 coins and of course some proved more difficult to find than others. You then only need a national newspaper reporting one rogue sale on eBay of a coin selling for let’s say £500 (the sale of which more than likely was never completed), and suddenly the word spreads that such and such coin is worth £500 – “check your change now!” they would scream. The reality is that with a couple of million coins in circulation there would always be enough to go round.
As a result of these Commemoratives being issued, many people would have taken up the hobby and of course that is a good thing, as long as they restricted themselves to trying to find them in their own change or maybe going to a dealer who would charge a minimal premium.
Perhaps one of the most hyped coins was the 2016 Peter Rabbit 50p. We had so many enquiries about this coin that it became very frustrating, as people were looking on eBay where sellers were asking for literally thousands of pounds each. Again the reality was that there were nearly 10 million minted!
Please remember that if you go onto eBay to research a coin, organise your search with the lowest price first which should give you a more realistic idea of value. The problem was that people searching for a Peter Rabbit 50p would start at the highest price, assume that was the true value, without then scrolling down to the lowest price on offer. Also remember that if the coin is being marketed as a “Buy it Now” and is still live, then that simply means that no-one has bought it, which in turn means that it is probably over-priced. Following or “watching” an auction can usually give you a much more realistic idea of the true market value rather than a “Buy it Now” offer.
Proof versions
Most of the Commemorative coins that we have spoken about have been issued over the last 40 years or so were also made available in specially produced Proof versions. A proof coin is generally of a much higher quality than a circulated coin, being produced with hand-finished dies that eliminate any imperfections. Due to the meticulous nature and time-consuming process of producing these coins they are only available in limited quantities. Endeavouring to attract both collectors and investors, the Royal Mint produce their proofs in Silver or Gold and sometimes even Platinum. They are usually contained in a plastic capsule and presented in a special box accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. It is strongly recommended not to handle these coins as the mirrored finish is susceptible to showing the smallest trace of a fingerprint which will greatly reduce the value.
These Proof coins are very popular, but condition is of paramount importance and must come with the original box and certificate.
Summary
Collecting the modern Commemorative coins is a very enjoyable aspect of the hobby but please remember that most circulated versions will not be worth anymore than the face value, despite what you may read in the papers or see online! Proof coins however are a lot more desirable being produced in much lower quantities and of a much higher quality.
