Latest news with #1933penny
The Sun
3 hours ago
- Business
- The Sun
Three ‘random old coins' you could have buried at the bottom of a jar worth £100,000 – exact details to look for
A COIN-collecting expert has said Brits could be sitting a goldmine of old currency. TikToker CoinCollectingWizard highlighted three coins - one of which is still in active circulation - which could collectively be worth hundreds of thousands of pounds. 1 1933 penny The first, the 1933 penny, is one of the UK's rarest coins and is worth well over £100,000. The exact number minted is unknown, but it is believed only six or seven 1933 pennies were ever made, as that year the Royal Mint decided there were enough pennies in circulation. However, it was tradition for the monarch to put a set of new coins underneath the foundations of any important new buildings. That meant a handful were struck for ceremonial purposes. The coin's rarity attracted the attention of criminals and in August 1970 thieves raided the coins buried beneath the foundation stone of the Church of St Cross, Middleton, near Leeds. That prompted the bishop of nearby St Mary's Church in Kirkstall to have the coins under his church dug up to be sold. The third and final penny is buried somewhere under Senate House at the University of London in Bloomsbury. At auction the 1933 pennies have sold for over £100,000. Neil Paisley, managing director of AH Baldwin & Sons, told the YouTuber Tom Scott that one sold in 2016 for a hammer price of approximately £140,000. The penny's value has also frequently led to counterfeit attempts, with people attempting to change the 5s to 3s on the more common 1935 penny. The Coin Collecting Wizard said: "Be careful, many fakes are out there. If you think you've got one, get it authenticated." 1905 half crown The second coin mentioned by the TikTok coin enthusiast is the 1905 half crown. Only 166,008 were minted, which puts their value between £450 and £10,000 depending on condition The coin is made of silver and features a portrait view of King Edward VII on one side and a shield on the other. While few members of the public are likely to have a 1905 half crown buried in the bottom of the wallet or down the back of the sofa, the third coin is one the average person is much more likely to run into. What are the most rare and valuable coins? The most valuable coin of all-time The 1933 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle - $18.9 million. The current record for the world's most expensive coin. It is illegal to own. The only publicly traded example sold for $18.9 million in 2021. The rarest coin of all-time The 1343 Edward III Florin - also known as the "Double Leopard", it was minted during King Edward III's reign in medieval England and only three examples are known to exist today. 2p - 'NEW PENCE' The two pence coin was introduced in the UK in 1971. It was printed with the words 'NEW PENCE' on it until 1982, when it was changed to 'TWO PENCE'. However in 1983 a number of coins were accidentally issued with the previous 'NEW PENCE' wording. Those 1983 two pences pieces with the 'new' markings are now worth upwards of £1,000. It comes after a for 14 times its face value. A Peter Rabbit coin fetched nearly £2,500 recently.
The Sun
27-05-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Minor detail to spot on ultra-rare 1p coin worth £130,000 at auction – do you have one behind your sofa?
A RARE penny could be the key to a fortune, if you're lucky enough to have one in your possession. The 1933 coin is one of the 10 rarest coins in the UK and is worth a whopping £130,000. 4 4 One avid coin collector shared his knowledge about the rare penny, including that there is only seven known to be in existence. The Coin Collecting Wizard on TikTok gave people an insight into what makes this penny so valuable. "This is the 1933 pre-decimal penny from the United Kingdom, so make sure you check your grandad's old coin collection and keep an eye out for this date," he said in a new TikTok, referring to the year 1933. "Do you have this coin from 1933. If so, you are rich?" He said that while "there are other dates to look out for too," of rare coins, none are "going to have the crazy value of the 1933 penny," and the reason for that is because there are only seven are known to exist. The reason there were so few is because this penny was not intended for general circulation. Instead, it was struck for ceremonial purposes, such as being placed under the foundation stones of important buildings. "So, if you find one, you are extremely lucky, but that doesn't necessarily mean there are no other dates to look for because there is," the Coin Collecting Wizard continued. Coin Collecting Wizard often posts about interesting coin facts on TikTok and in one video ran through the most valuable pennies. Speaking in the video, he urged viewers to "stop what you're doing and listen". He said: "Did you know there are old pennies worth thousands of pounds?" In some cases, the extremely rare 1p pieces have sold for a whopping £200,000. Bear in mind though, that you might not always get such a hefty amount for a rare coin. The design of the coin, its condition and whether or not the coin is in circulation also affects how much it could be worth. How to spot valuable items COMMENTS by Consumer Editor, Alice Grahns: It's easy to check if items in your attic are valuable. As a first step, go on eBay to check what other similar pieces, if not the same, have sold for recently. Simply search for your item, filter by 'sold listings' and toggle by the highest value. This will give you an idea of how much others are willing to pay for it. The method can be used for everything ranging from rare coins and notes to stamps, old toys, books and vinyl records - just to mention a few examples. For coins, online tools from change experts like Coin Hunter are also helpful to see how much it could be worth. Plus, you can refer to Change Checker's latest scarcity index update to see which coins are topping the charts. For especially valuable items, you may want to enlist the help of experts or auction houses. Do your research first though and be aware of any fees for evaluating your stuff. As a rule of thumb, rarity and condition are key factors in determining the value of any item. You're never guaranteed to make a mint, however. You can easily figure out how rare a coin is, by checking its mintage figures. This relates to how many coins were produced by The Royal Mint. If a coin has a low mintage, it means there's less in circulation and is therefore rarer and it could potentially be worth more than its face value. Either way, you'll want to keep an eye out for some in particular which can sell for big numbers. Plus sometimes specific details can determine how much the penny will sell for - such as if it has an error.
