KEEP an eye on your spare change as rare coins can go for hundreds more than their face value.
It’s worth having a dig around the back of your sofa for any 10p pieces which could be worth a fair amount too.
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The Royal Mint, the official maker of British coins, often produces commemorative variations of which there are a limited amount.
Because there’s fewer of them in circulation, they attract coin collectors willing to pay over the odds for them.
When it comes to 10p coins, the rarest and most valuable ones are the A to Z collection, minted in 2018 and re-released in 2019.
The set represents each letter of the alphabet but they’re all worth different amounts.
RARE COINS AND VALUABLE NOTES
The coins explore a number of themes, including animals, fish and chips, cricket and even James Bond.
Up to 304,000 of each A-Z 10p design is in circulation, making them some of the most sought-after out there.
Many collectors are desperate to get hold of all 26 coins and complete the alphabet.
Some which are uncirculated are in mint condition and often sell for more than their circulated counterparts.
Rare and valuable coins – is yours worth a mint?
Remember though, that a coin is really only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.
That means the prices we’ve found might not be what you get for them.
Either way, they give you an indication of how much people have sold them for in recent months.
Z for Zebra Crossing 10p – £10
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Royal Mint released this coin to celebrate James Callaghan’s iconic black and white pedestrian crossing, with 283,000 put into circulation overall.
They have also become iconic in British culture since featuring on the iconic cover of Beatles album Abbey Road.
The circulated Z for Zebra 10p last sold on eBay for £9.50.
That said, it has previously sold for up to £37 in the past.
W for World Wide Web 10p – £6
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Celebrating Brit Tim Berners-Lee’s invention of the internet, this W for World Wide Web 10p features a spiderweb design.
Though it’s not quite clear how the design actually relates to the internet, we’ve seen these coins going for £26 – though prices at the moment have dropped considerably.
The highest price that someone recently paid for this coin on eBay was £5.50.
There have been 283,000 of these coins minted.
Y for Yeoman Warder 10p – £10
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This coin features a yeoman warder on the tails side to celebrate the ceremonial guardians of the Tower of London who protect the British Crown Jewels.
It is third highest on the Change Checker scarcity list.
The highest recent selling price we could find on eBay for a 2019 Y for Yeoman 10p coin was £10.39 but previously one sold for £30.
There are 283,000 of these coins in circulation in total.
R for Robin 10p – £7
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Down two places on the scarcity index from August, the R for Robin coin still sells for more than the other 10p pieces on the market.
R for Robin features a wintery, snowflake background with a robin sitting inside the letter R.
That gives it extra appeal around Christmas time.
We spotted a 2019 coin sold for £15.99 on eBay previously, but the most recent one sold was for £6.50.
Still, there are more of these in circulation than Y for Yeoman Warder and Z for Zebra Crossing coins, with 284,000 in total.
T is for Tea 10p – £4
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This 10p features a boiled traditional tea pot next to the letter ‘T’.
It was created due to our nation’s undeniable love for the drink.
In 2018 220,000 were issued for circulation and 84,000 in 2019.
The coins won’t fetch you much online, with one we spotted recently on eBay going for £4.
J is for Jubilee 10p – £6
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Another coin that has come up the scarcity index is the Jubilee 10p which is now in sixth place.
The coin was designed by Jody Clark in honour of the country’s love of a Jubilee celebration.
Whether its a party in the street or watching the event on the telly, Brits know how to make the occasion.
The 10p was minted in 2018 with 220,000 being issued, a further 84,000 were issued in 2019. A couple of months ago this coin sold for £40 but most recently has sold for £5.97.
What makes a coin more valuable?
Mintage figures affect the value of a coin. The lower the mintage, the more rare and valuable the coin is.
However, Change Checker looks at how many collectors have acquired the coin, showing how easy it is to find.
Experts also track how many times the design has been requested as a swap during the previous three months, showing them collector demand.
While the index doesn’t necessarily correspond to value, it is an effective indicator.
What do I do if I have a rare coin and how do I find out how much it’s worth?
One in every four old £1 are thought to be fake according to The Royal Mint, meaning there could be a fake in your spare change.
The Royal Mint can’t value the coin but can confirm that it’s genuine. They’ll supply you with a letter to confirm this.
Once you know if it’s real you’ll be able to sell it through a coin dealer, a specialist such as Change Checker, auction or eBay.
You can look at eBay’s recent sold prices to get an indicator of how much your coin usually goes for on the site.
Search the full name of the coin, select the “sold” listing and then toggle the search to “highest value”.
You’ll then have an idea of the amount of money that the coin is being sold for.
We’ve updated our list of the rarest and most valuable 50p pieces in circulation and it includes a list of coins worth up to £895.
Meanwhile, keep up to date with all the rare coins and valuable notes news from The Sun.
This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk
