An expert has urged Brits to check their coin jars for the UK’s “most expensive coin” worth a staggering £127,000. The coin, which is almost 100 years old, is especially valuable due to its rarity.
The piece in question is a one penny coin from 1933. What makes it so special is the fact that only around six or seven of these were ever thought to have been created by the Royal Mint.
The reverse side of the coin – or the heads side – depicts a woman as Britannia holding a trident. On the other side is the portrait of King George V.
However, it must be dated 1933 – as penny coins from other years are not worth as much. An expert, known online as the Coin Collector UK, explained more in a video posted to TikTok.
He said: “£127,000 for this old one penny coin. So the date that you want to be checking your pennies for is the year 1933.”
For reference he showed viewers a copy of a similar coin from 1938. “It’s actually the closest thing I have. Unfortunately, I don’t have the original one,” he said. “And the 1933 penny will be a George V penny. It’s definitely one you want to be looking out for.”
He described it as “one of the most expensive British coins ever”. In an auction in the US in 2016, a copy of the coin sold for more than £127,000. The expert continued: “It’s believed that only seven of these were ever produced in 1933 due to low demand for coinage during that year, Three of these were put into the walls of buildings.
“Two were given to museums, one to the Royal Mint and another to the British Museum. Then two were sold off into private collections, one of which sold for £127,000. So, it’s always worth checking your old jars of coins in case you do have a rare 1933 penny.”
On its website, the Royal Mint explained more: “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.”