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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Business
Jayke Brophy & Sam Barker

'Extremely rare' 50p coin sells for £175 on eBay with thousands more out there

One of the rarest 50p coins in the UK has sold for a whopping £175 on eBay - and there are 210,000 of them in the UK.

The Kew Gardens 50p features the famous Chinese Pagoda from the London park being intertwined by a leafy climber.

The most valuable version of the 50p was released in 2009 to mark 250 years since Kew Gardens opened in 1759.

There are only 210,000 in circulation - substantially less than other coins, where millions can be minted.

It is this low circulation that makes the 2009 Kew Gardens coin valuable to collectors and sees it often top lists of the rarest 50 pence pieces.

One of the coins recently sold for £175 on eBay, Lincolnshire Live reports - 350x more than its face value.

Around 50 bids were made on the coin before it finally sold.

The Kew Gardens 50p is highly valuable to collectors (PA)

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 a much higher number of this coin was minted, it is considerably less valuable to collectors.

The 2019 version typically sells for between £70 and £80 .

According to Coin Hunter, the 2009 Kew Gardens 50p piece normally sells for between £150.89 and £161.50.

The Mirror has spotted examples of the 50p selling for as much as £215 on eBay .

How to spot a fake coin

If you’re thinking about buying a rare coin on eBay, you should always be wary of fakes doing the rounds - this includes the Kew Gardens 50p.

Change Checker says there are a few warning signs you should watch out for. The first is a very frosted design or high relief which can sometimes be found on fake coins.

With the Kew Gardens 50p, you also want to check for a sharp "pointy" roof on the top of the pagoda.

There also shouldn't be lines on either side of the word "Kew" at the bottom of the coin. These lines can indicate a fake coin, however, they are also visible on Proof and Brilliant Uncirculated versions as well.

On the back of the coin, the Queen’s neck should be pointing to "P" in the word "pence".

Websites and Facebook groups from change experts like Coin Hunter can help you work out if a coin is the real deal or not, and The Fake Pound Coin Database has listed several examples to show you what you should be aware of.

You can also get coins verified by the Royal Mint.

We've got a guide on the rarest error coins that could be worth up to £3,100.

Another coin to watch out for is this bizarre 20p with no date on - it can fetch up to £60 on eBay.

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