It may be one of the lowly coins of the realm, but the nickel-plated smaller steel 10p, introduced in September 1992, can be worth much more than its face value, with some being sold for up to £11 each.
Despite most of the coins in circulation not being worth more than their face value – in this case 10p – the rarer ones will have a value way beyond that. Some collectors are willing to pay many times the face value if they are particularly keen to complete a set.
These coins include those with rare designs on the reverse - or the tails - side of the coin. However, top prices can be paid for coins issued containing errors forged during their manufacture.
In the case of 10ps, among the rarest are in the 'A to Z' Best of British range, issued between 2018 and 2019, it is being reported.
As the name suggests, the coins featured a letter of the alphabet, along with a design that represented that letter. They were put on sale at Royal Mint for £2 each – 20 times their face value, but they are no longer available, thus pushing up their potential value. Full sets of the coin are being advertised for sale on Amazon for £111.
T - £7
The 'A' coin kicked off the collection with a depiction of the Angel of the North. The 'T' coin featured the good old British cuppa. The 'F' coin celebrated fish and chips, while 'N' is an acknowledgement of the work of the National Health Service.
In 2018 220,000 of each coin were minted. But when the coins were re-released in 2019, 20 of the letters had just 84,000 made, making them rarer and more valuable. The remaining five 2019 coins were printed in runs of 83,000 for 'Q', 64,000 for 'R' and 63,000 for 'W', 'Y' and 'Z'.
Here are six more of the rarest 10ps, and what they typically fetch on the market.
R - £14
This 10p has a design that features the robin redbreast perching inside the loop of the 'R'.
The coin was the rarest on the market in November, according to the collectors' and swappers' website Change Checker. On Amazon, a gold-plated Ten Pence Brilliant Uncirculated 'R' coin was available for £16.90.
Y and Z - £11
The 'Y' coin celebrated the yeoman warders of the Tower of London.
The 'Z' version had a design that marked another British icon - the zebra crossing, first installed in Slough, Berkshire, in 1951.
W - £10
The 'W' coin had a slightly misleading spider's web design, but was actually hailing the invention of the world wide web by Sir Tim Berners-Lee.
Q - £6
The 'Q' coin has a light-hearted design to mark another great British institution - the art of queueing.
How to know if a coin is valuable
Despite the fact that most coins are only worth their face value, it is worth taking a closer look at the change in your pocket because if it seems unusual in any way, that could be the first sign that it may be valuable.
A spokesperson for Change Checker said: "Any coin that is of particular collector interest, perhaps it has a low mintage, a specific error or mis-strike detail, or its design carries a popular theme, may hold a higher value than others."
That could mean it has a special design on one side, or has an obvious mistake.
Change Checker has a guide that can help you establish if a coin is valuable to a collector – or if it is best spent in a shop instead.
How to sell a valuable coin
If you think you have a valuable coin, one option is to sell it online on auction websites such as eBay. According to the householdmoneysaving.com website, these are the most sought-after and valuable British coins today:
- 973 EEC 50 Pence Coin – £3,000.
- 2012 London Olympics Aquatics Fifty Pence – £1,500.
- 1983 Two Pence “New Pence” Coin – £500.
- 2015 Silver Two Pence Coin – £485.
- 2009 Kew Gardens Fifty Pence Coin – £170.
However, you may want to have a professional valuation, and members of the British Nuismatic Trade Association may be able to help and perhaps sell them on your behalf.
Do you have you an alphabet 10p? Tell us in the comments below
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