Rare 10p Coins

• Rare 10p Coins 2019
• Rare 10p Coins 1992

The Royal Mint has recently confirmed that 2.6m 10p coins from the popular A-Z Great British Coin Hunt collection will be released into UK circulation this month.

Most rare and valuable alphabet 10p coins in circulation - check if you have one The A-Z collection was launched to map out what makes Britain great – from the Angel of the North to a Zebra.

• The original 10p was first issued in 1968 as a larger coin and was initially used alongside and was the same size as its predecimal equivalent coin, the florin (two shillings). In 1992 the 10p was made smaller and lighter. For the smaller current type, see here. Note that there are many minor varieties for these old-size 10p coins.
• 1917 George V Sovereign. Circulating gold coinage was a casualty of the First World War.

This is in addition to the 2.6m coins that were initially struck and released in March – essentially doubling your chances of finding one.

Which? reveals how you can find one of these coins, what makes rare coins valuable and which coins you should look out for.

Where are the rare coins being released?

The latest batch of coins will be released traditionally through banks and cash distribution centres around the UK, so everyone should have an equal chance of finding one.

In the past, coins from the A-Z collection have been released in more unusual ways.

The initial release in March was distributed through The Post Office network, and in June, a small number of the ‘F’ (for fish and chips) coins were given to 20 chippies around the UK to hand over to a few lucky customers.

Similarly in July, the ‘N’ NHS coin was put in the tills of 13 NHS Trust shops in the UK for visitors to collect in their change.

Will the new release affect the coins’ value?

There are a number of factors that determine whether a coin is considered to be worth more than its face value.

The first is how scarce the coin is. A coin’s mintage counts how many of that coin were released into circulation. If there aren’t many coins in circulation, then they’re more difficult to get hold of – and that’s why collectors may be willing to pay more for them.

The second factor is how collectible a coin is. People may be willing to pay more for a coin to complete their collections.

While this latest release of more A-Z 10p coins will mean they have higher mintages, it could encourage more people to start collecting and may make the coins more sought-after.

If people hang onto the coins in their own private collections, they’re being taken out of circulation and that design will become rarer. This has been the case with the 2012 Olympic 50p coins – more than 75% have now been taken out of circulation by collectors.

Finally, there’s the coin’s condition. If it’s free from marks, scratches and grime, a collector is much more likely to want it in their collection.

However, keen coin collectors are likely to be encouraged by the increased likelihood of finding something special in their change.

Essentially, a rare coin – no matter its mintage, collectability or condition – is only ever worth what someone is willing to pay for it, and being able to sell a coin for more than its monetary value is never guaranteed.

What do coin collectors think?

We asked Which? Money readers, who are collecting the A-Z 10p coins, for their thoughts on extra coins being released, and whether they’re worried about their coins’ value being affected.

For Ben from Derbyshire, having more coins in circulation isn’t a bad thing: ‘I don’t mind if more coins come out – I will collect more.’

Craig from Stoke-on-Trent isn’t put off, either: ‘I’m saving for my son – he’s three at the moment, so it will be nice for him to have when he’s older.’

However, David, who’s from Gateshead, isn’t happy that more of the 10p coins are being released. ‘I bought a few coins for my collections, as I read these coins will become quite valuable in years to come,’ he explains. ‘Now the Royal Mint has devalued my collection.

‘I expect a lot of people will be upset by the Royal Mint’s actions.’

Rachel Hooper – a coin expert from ChangeChecker – is glad more 10p A-Z coins are being released. ‘We have heard from many frustrated collectors who haven’t been able to find any of these coins in their change, and so have been put off the hunt.

‘I’m sure that as more turn up in people’s change and the opportunity to build a whole collection becomes more attainable, we will start to see more people collecting and swapping these coins.’

When asked what effect the release of more coins will have on the collections’ mintage and value, Rachel says: ‘While we don’t know the exact mintages for each design, if we were to average it out as 200,000 coins per design, that would still mean that each coin is actually scarcer than the rarest circulating 50p – the Kew Gardens – which has a mintage of 210,000.’

So, even with more coins in the mix, collectors should be pleased to know that their A-Z finds will still be rare collectors’ items.

Which A-Z 10p coins are the most sought-after?

While there’s not enough data to compile a full scarcity index yet, ChangeChecker has instead made a swap index to indicate which coins seem to be the most in demand.

Its results indicate that ‘A’ Angel of the North is by far the most popular coin, followed by ‘E’ English breakfast and ‘L’ Loch Ness Monster.

It’s difficult to know the reasons why these have emerged as the top three – it could be that people want coins to match their initials, want an ‘A’ to start their collection, or simply like those designs the most.

With the new release of additional coins, it will soon be easier to get a clearer picture of which coins people are trying to find.

What is the Great British Coin Hunt?

The A-Z 10p collection is made up of 26 10p coins, each adorned with letters A-Z that picture something quintessentially British. This ranges from King Arthur to a teapot and queuing.

The graphic below shows the full list of A-Z British 10p coins.

If you want to complete your set, the Royal Mint has released a Great British Coin Hunt app to help you track your collection, and shows where in the country the most coins are being found.

The collection has already proved very popular, so fingers crossed more of these coins will be released soon.

• Find out more: Rare new 10p coins: can you collect all 26 from A-Z?

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The original 10p coins were first issued in 1968 as a larger coin and was initially used alongside and was the same size as its predecimal equivalent coin, the florin (or two shillings). In 1992 10p coins were made smaller, lighter and generally more convenient. Only the smaller post 1992 10p coins shown on this page are legal tender. For the previous larger ones, see here.

Specifications are shown at the bottom of this page.

The Alphabet 10p’s (2018 & 2019)

On the 1st March 2018 the Royal Mint introduced a range of Twenty-Six ‘Quintessentially British’ 10p coins, each showing a letter of the alphabet representing a British related theme. All of the coins will circulate and initially 2.6m have been made (possibly 100,000 of each?). They are also available to purchase in silver proof form for £35.00 each, which adds up to a staggering £910.00 for anyone who wants to buy them all. In 2019 they decided to mint the same alphabet coins with the ‘2019’ date, so there are technically two of each letter available.

They are also sold for £2 each termed ‘Early Strike Uncirculated’ which is just marketing-speak as far as I can tell. The ‘Early Strike’ coins they supply are struck to normal circulation coin standard and are invariably a bit bag marked and exhibit a multitude of other imperfections. Initial demand was so high that some early orders of multiple coins were sent in a single zip-lock bag, picking up more bag marks in the post – originally it was advertised that individual coins would come in individual velvet pouches, then separate small zip-lock bags.

Initial problems ordering them

There was disappointment from a lot of people about the way the Royal Mint dealt with orders and the fact that those that ordered first (some waited hours in the website queue system on the 1st of March 2018) don’t seem to have received them first. I ordered two sets on the 2nd March and received them in mid April! The coins are also available to buy from Crown Post Offices, but come in individual and more attractive packages for £4 each. Supply of the Post Office coins also seems limited and I’m still not sure if the Post Office coins for £4 each are any better, in terms of quality, than the often bag-marked £2 versions available from the Royal Mint.

In Circulation

They are not yet widely found in circulation, even now in October 2019. For those with a little patience, the cheapest way to get them all will be from change at face value or by swapping with others, e.g. on the Check Your Change Facebook group!

Interestingly, the obverse type is also new as it shows the denomination ‘TEN PENCE’ instead of it being featured on the reverse. I assume this was to provide more space on the reverse for the main design themes.

Mintage for circulation: 220,000 for each 2018 dated letter (2019 dated figures are unknown).

Collectability/Scarcity: 2, for all alphabet 10p coins dated 2018 or 2019.

Previous 10p types:

Rare 10p Coins 2019

Obverse Type 3, used 1992 – 1997 (bust design by Raphael Maklouf):

Reverse Type 3, used 1992 – 2008 (design by Christopher Ironside):

Edge: Milled.

The design:

English lion, royally crowned. ‘TEN PENCE’ and ’10’ above and below.

Dates:

1992*, Mintage 1,413,455,170.
1993, None for circulation and an unknown number for sets.
1994, None for circulation, 56,945 for annual sets.
1995, Mintage 43,259,000.
1996, Mintage 118,738,000.
1997, Mintage 99,196,000

Collectability/Scarcity: 1 for the high mintage coins. 2 for 1993 and 1994 (for scale details see here)

*Minor varieties exist of 1992 dated coins concerning the shape of the rim and the alignment of letters/numbers in relation to the edge beading. A couple of types are quite rare and should be at least 3 on the Collectability/Scarcity scale, but aren’t widely collected, most people being happy to just have one of each date.

Obverse Type 4, used 1998 – 2008 (bust design by Ian Rank-Broadley):

Reverse Type 3, used 1992 – 2008 (design by Christopher Ironside):

Edge: Milled.

Dates:

1998, None for circulation and an unknown number for sets.
1999, None for circulation and an unknown number for sets.
2000, Mintage 134,733,000.
2001, Mintage 129,281,000.
2002, Mintage 80,934,000.
2003, Mintage 88,118,000.
2004, Mintage 99,602,000.
2005*, Mintage 69,604,000.
2006*, Mintage 118,803,000.
2007, Mintage 72,720,000.
2008, Mintage 9,720,000.
2009, Mintage unknown. A coin with this date and the older lion reverse shouldn’t exist! It’s a mule (a mismatch of obverse and reverse dies). Just 2 or 3 examples are known.

Collectability/Scarcity: 1 for the high mintage coins, 2 for 1998 and 1999 and 10 for the 2009 mule with the lion reverse (for scale details see here)

Minor varieties exist for 2005 (and possibly 2006) concerning the position of the digit ‘1’ in the number ’10’ and its alignment with the rim beads. Both types are believed common.

Obverse Type 5, used 2008 – 2015 (bust design by Ian Rank-Broadley):

Reverse Type 4, used 2008 – date (design by Matthew Dent):

Edge: Milled.

The design:

Top left section of the Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom.

Rare 10p Coins 1992

Dates:

2008, Mintage 71,447,000.
2009, Mintage 84,360,000.
2010, Mintage 96,600,500.
2011, Mintage 59,603,850.
2012, Mintage 11,600,030.
2013, Mintage 320,200,750.
2014, Mintage 490,202,020.
2015, Mintage 119,000,000.

Collectability/Scarcity (all): 1 (for scale details see here)

Obverse Type 6, used 2015 onwards (bust design by (Mr) Jody Clark):

Reverse Type 4, used 2008 – date (design by Matthew Dent):

Edge: Milled.

Dates:

2015, Mintage 91,900,000.
2016, Mintage 135,380,000.
2017, Mintage 33,300,000.
2018, Mintage not yet known (what is known, is that none will appear in circulation, they can be found in sets only).
2019, Mintage not yet known.

Specifications for all current 10p coins:

Size: 24.5mm
Width: 1.85mm
Metal Composition 1992 – 2010: Cupro-nickel (75% copper and 25% nickel)
Metal Composition 2011 – date: Steel core plated with nickel.
Weight: 6.50 grammes

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