Can you spot the ‘major design error’ on The Gruffalo’s Child 50p?
I knew this 50p would hit the headlines, but I didn’t think it would be because of a major design ‘error’!
The brand new 50p released today celebrates the 20th anniversary of the best-selling children’s book – The Gruffalo’s Child. Following in the footsteps of the sell-out Gruffalo 50ps from 2019, the 2024 The Gruffalo’s Child is already proving incredibly popular with collectors.
But you might already have noticed something unusual is afoot with the coin’s design…
How many toes?
The coin’s design brings to life a pivotal moment in the story when the Gruffalo’s Child comes face to face with the cunning mouse. The mouse can be seen to the left, sporting a sneaky smirk and the Gruffalo’s Child waits anxiously on the right, Stick Man in hand.
Whilst I’m sure you’ll agree this new 50p is simply adorable, what you might not have realised is that the design includes a major ‘error‘…
If you look closely, you’ll see the Gruffalo’s Child is depicted with three toes on each foot. Interestingly, eagle-eyed collectors out there have noticed that this could be a potential error on the coin. That’s because the original illustrations from the book show the Gruffalo’s Child with four toes (or rather claws!) on each foot, as does the 2011 BBC film adaptation.
Although the coin design features an image taken from an illustration in the book, it seems that the book version shows the Gruffalo’s Child’s toes hidden in the snow, whereas they can be seen above the snow on the coin. And this is where the ‘error’ can be spotted.
You’ll also notice that although the footprints in the snow aren’t clearly defined in the original illustration, on the coin they clearly show just three toes on each of the Gruffalo’s Child’s footprints.
Whilst this could be due to the viewing angle where two toes might be hidden by the snow, there’s no doubt that the footprints only have three toes on each!
Previous design ‘error’
This isn’t the first time there’s been a design ‘error’ like this on a UK coin, as the 2021 H. G. Wells £2 featured a four-legged tripod, making it arguably one of the most controversial and talked about coin designs in recent years. The unusual design hit the headlines when collectors noticed the additional leg featuring on the Martian from Wells’ famed War of the Worlds when the coin was issued in the 2021 Annual Coin Set.
Could this make The Gruffalo’s Child 50p even more sought-after?
This isn’t technically an ‘error coin’, but could show an issue with the design if indeed The Gruffalo’s Child is missing two toes!
Something like this generally makes coins even more collectible and sought-after amongst collectors. It certainly makes for interesting collecting and, with press articles already popping up about the ‘major error’, this 50p is certainly one to watch…
Don’t miss out on the chance to own yours!
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