POPULAR Olympic-style 50p coins launched a decade ago could be worth up to £1,500.
The Royal Mint issued 29 new coins in 2011 to commemorate the 2012 Olympics held in London.
2
2
But 10 years on, there’s still some in circulation which could be worth hundreds.
The Royal Mint estimates there’s still 25% of the Olympic 50p coins left out there.
So if you have one in your purse or wallet now, the chances are it’s much more valuable than it would have been five years ago and might be worth selling.
What is the rarest Olympic 50p coin?
According to ChangeChecker.org, out of all the Olympic coins, the football coin is the rarest, with just 1,125,000 entering circulation.
The coin features the hotly debated offside rule in the form of a simple diagram.
It’s not as rare as something like the Kew Gardens 50p – only 210,000 of those exist.
That 50p coin was minted a few years earlier than the Olympic collection, but it’ll sell for up to a whopping £895 on eBay.
But when it comes to prices of the Olympic lot individually, the most expensive recently sold listing we could find on eBay was £1,500 for a 2012 Olympic aquatics coin.
RARE COINS AND VALUABLE NOTES
It’s worth mentioning that this coin had the original design, which showed waves passing over the swimmer’s face before it was quickly adapted.
In the past, the rare aquatics coin has sold for more than £1,000.
The error in the design makes it more valuable to collectors, just like a number of other rare errors out there too.
Otherwise, the 2012 aquatics coin with the updated design is one of the more highly circulated coins with 2,197,000 released.
The most widely circulated of the set is the archer coin with well over 3.3million released to the general public.
How much are the Olympic 50p coins worth?
The value of these coins can change so it’s always worth taking each listing with a pinch of salt – a coin can often only be worth what someone is willing to bid for it.
Be wary about fakes out there as well – the can crop up online from time to time.
Here’s the top ten rarest coins of the Olympic collection, and how much they’ve sold for recently on eBay.
1. Aquatics
Sold for £1,500 on eBay
If you find an aquatic 50p error coin with lines over the face, this may be worth a small fortune.
A small handful of this original design was put into circulation but the design was then adapted very quickly to show the face above the water.
With so few of the original design out there, the coin’s value has been pushed up significantly.
Sold for £75 on eBay
The football coins are the rarest of all the Olympics 2012 coins with just 1,125,500 in circulation.
The coin’s design shows a football pitch with a diagram explaining the “offside” rule.
3. Wrestling
Sold for £30 on eBay
As the next rarest of all the coins, you can still get a decent price for the Wrestling coin.
We found that this coin, which shows two wrestlers fighting in an indoor stadium, had sold for £30 on eBay.
4. Judo
Sold for £20 on eBay
If you find a Judo Olympics 50p coin down the back of the sofa, you could sell it for a decent price.
The coin, which depict one barefoot fighter throwing another to the floor, had recently sold for on eBay was £20.
Rare coins and valuable notes – is yours worth a mint?
5. Triathlon
Sold for £12 on eBay
The Triathlon coin recently fetched £12 on eBay, according to our research.
Keep an eye out for the design which shows three outlined figures – one swimming one cycling and one running.
6. Tennis
Sold for £8.50 on eBay
The Olympics 2012 tennis coin depicts a ball soaring over a net.
We found that it had sold for just over £8 on eBay.
7. Goalball
Sold for £5.50 on eBay
You could sell a goalball Olympics 2012 50p for £5.50 if you find it buried in an old coat pocket.
The design shows a goalball player throwing the ball in a sport that is designed specifically for athletes with visual impairment.
8. Shooting
Sold for £25 on eBay
The shooting coin for the 2012 Olympics showed a figure firing their rifle into the sky.
Our research showed that one of the coins recently sold for £25 on eBay, despite it being lower down the pecking order than some other examples.
9. Taekwondo
Sold for £6.50 on eBay
If you find the Taekwondo coin, you could flog it for £6.50 on eBay.
The coin’s design shows two fighters with the one in the foreground doing a very high kick.
10. Handball
Sold for £5.50 on eBay
The handball coin still recently sold for £5.50 on eBay even though it makes the bottom of our list.
The design shows a male athlete preparing to throw a ball with the blueprint of a handball pitch in the background.
