A rare 50p coin has been sold for a whopping £175 and there are thousands more in circulation.
The coin was released in 2009 to mark 250 years since Kew Gardens opened in 1759 and the Royal Mint estimate around 210,000 were made. It features the famous Chinese Pagoda at the Royal Botanic Garden on the tails side with the Queen's face as normal on the other.
Change checking website Coin Hunter puts the average resale price for the Kew Gardens 50p between £150.89 and £161.50, meaning this particular coin has sold just above the price range. The 'genuine 2009 Kew Gardens 50p coin' listing on eBay sparked a 50-way bidding war before finally being sold for £175 - as Lincoln Live reports.
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It's always worth checking your change for some of the rarest coins in circulation across the UK. However, finding a Kew Gardens 50p coin doesn't necessarily mean you're about to make a fortune. A re-circulated version of the iconic coin was minted in 2019, as part of a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the 50p coin. As a much higher number of this coin was minted, it is considerably less valuable to collectors.
If you're looking to begin your own collection, it is important to make sure you're not falling for any scams. Coin enthusiast website Change Checker has some tips on the best ways to ensure a Kew Gardens 50p coin is genuine. The advice says the important things to look out for include the "frosted design" or "very high relief" on the design, which can be used on fakes.
They have also warned that coins that are 'too shiny' could be fakes, seeing as they have been in circulation since 2009 and many will have lost their shine by now.
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