Here’s what you need to know about this extremely rare coin
An expert has urged Brits to look in old coin tins for a penny worth “over £100,000”. This highly sought-after piece once sold for £127,000 at auction.
In a video uploaded to social media platform TikTok, an expert known as the Coin Collecting Wizard urged his followers to keep an eye out for certain “old pennies”. You may not realise it but these coins could be worth far more than their face value.
He said: “Your grandparents probably had no idea that the old pennies they used every day could be worth a fortune today. Back then they were just enjoying their best life, not realising that some of these coins are now worth hundreds or even thousands of pounds.”
First on his list was an extremely rare penny from 1933. Only an estimated six or seven of these coins were ever minted by the Royal Mint.
The reverse (tail side) of this valuable penny features Britannia brandishing a trident, while King George V’s portrait is on the other side. This coin was not intended for public circulation as there were already enough pennies in use at the time.
The expert said: “Like the 1933 British penny, which can sell for over £100,000.” he added: “So before you walk past that dusty old coin tin at your grandparents’ house, check it.
“You never know, you might just find a hidden treasure.” According to the Antiques Trade Gazette, one specimen of this particular coin sold for £127,000 at auction back in 2016.
The Royal Mint Museum’s official website explains: “If you have heard of only one rare coin, there is a good chance that it is the 1933 penny. For some reason, this coin, more than any other, has lodged itself in the public consciousness.
“Indeed, people have spent a lifetime sifting through their coins in a vain attempt to find one. The banks possessed such large stocks of pennies in 1933 that it was not necessary to strike any more for general circulation. But there was a convention at the time that complete sets of coins of the current year were buried under the foundation stones of new buildings.
“Consequently, three 1933 pennies were struck for buildings erected in that year, along with a small number to be kept as record copies by the British Museum and the Royal Mint Museum. No record was kept at the time of how many pennies dated 1933 were made but it is thought to be no more than six or seven.
“With no precise record of the number made, and with the coin having been struck to ordinary circulation standard, it seemed possible that one might turn up in everyday use, prompting a generation to search their change for the rare but ultimately elusive penny of 1933.”
But this was not the only coin mentioned in the video. He continued: “Here are some worth noting.”
These included:
- 1950 penny – worth “between £30 and £70”
- 1918 penny with a “KN” mint mark – worth “between £30 and £600”
- 1875 “H” penny – worth “between £100 and £3,000”
- 1919 “KN” penny – worth “up to £2,000”
- 1951 penny – worth “between £50 and £100”
- 1912 penny with a “H” mint mark – worth “around £5”
- 1902 penny with a low tide – worth £500
He warned: “But remember that these prices do depend on the condition of your coin.”
