Posts by Rachel
Could this Bee a new error £1 coin?
2.975 million King Charles III Bee £1 coins entered circulation in August 2024. Since then, the race has been on to track down these new coins creating a buzz in the collecting world!
Many collectors have already been lucky enough to come across the Bee £1, but perhaps none so lucky as Diane Bath, who spotted a rare error on one of the coins…
The error coin causing a buzz
Diane runs The Post Office in Broughton-in-Furness, Cumbria, where she found a King Charles III Bee £1 struck in entirely one colour!
The image below shows the single metal coin, without the silver-coloured inner piece seen on standard United Kingdom £1 coins:
£1 coins are struck from a nickel-brass outer ring and an inner piece made from a nickel-plated brass alloy. It’s possible that this error coin was created due to the inner section not being punched out of the nickel-brass before the coin was struck. For confirmation of this, we’d suggest sending the error coin to The Royal Mint for verification.
Diane, a postmistress of over 20 years, told the press: “I am absolutely over the moon. Obviously we handle cash all the time and it’s the most exciting find I’ve ever had in over two decades.”
Worth a pretty penny
The coin was auctioned on 18th October by Ryedale Auctioneers, and whilst it had an estimated value of £500-£800, it actually sold for £1,250!
Image Credit: Ryedale Auctioneers
A similar error occurred when the first 12-sided £1 coins were released back in 2017, although only a small handful of these error coins were ever found. Reportedly, one such error coin sold for over £2,000 at auction!
Ultimately, the selling price of a rare error item like this at auction depends on how much a collector is willing to pay to get their hands on it. So remember, if you’re looking to secure an error coin on the secondary market, always do your research and be aware of fakes before you buy.
Have you spotted any errors on the new King Charles III coinage? Let us know in the comments below!
Secure the Complete Set of New UK Coinage!
Whilst the Bee £1 and Salmon 50p can now be found in your change, it could be years until all 8 coins can readily be found in circulation…
So don’t miss out! Own the complete set now, with each coin including a special privy mark to set them apart from the coins in your change!
Secure the complete collection for just £32.50 + (p&p) here >>
Can you complete the shield!?
It’s been 16 years since Matthew Dent redesigned the UK’s definitive coins to create the Royal Shield of Arms design, and we now have the New UK Coinage for King Charles III which will replace these designs.
So it’s hard to believe there are still some people who don’t actually realise that these coins can be pieced together to complete the shield!
Time for change
In 2005, it was decided that our definitive UK coinage was due an overhaul, and The Royal Mint ran a competition for members of the public to design the new coins. Out of 4,000 designs that were submitted, The Royal Mint Advisory Committee selected Matthew Dent’s Royal Shield designs as the winner in 2008.
Speaking about his designs, Dent said “I felt that the solution to The Royal Mint’s brief lay in a united design, united in terms of theme, execution and coverage over the surface of the coins.”
Using all the coins from the 1p to the 50p and fitting them together like a jig-saw, the complete shield is revealed – as seen on the £1 coin design issued from 2008 until 2015.
Of course, the old round pound was replaced by the 12 sided Nations of the Crown £1 in 2017 and have now been withdrawn from circulation. However, the definitive 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p and 50p shield coins can still be found in your change, meaning the Royal Shield can still be collected and completed.
In fact, I bet if you were to check the change in your pocket right now, you’d be surprised by how much of the shield you’ll already be able to piece together!
Complete the Shield
So, why not try collecting the Royal Shield coins and see if you can complete the shield? And, if you’d like to give yourself even more of a challenge, how about collecting the whole shield for each year, starting with the coins issued in 2008!
To help you on your collecting journey, you can secure your own Royal Shield Collector Pack, which includes the Royal Shield 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p and 20p – all you have to do is find the 50p in your change to complete the shield.
Secure your Royal Shield Collector Pack for JUST £4.99 (+p&p) >>
Olympic Gold Medallist Signs Team GB 50ps for Change Checker!
2024 is shaping up to be an unforgettable Summer of Sport, as our Team GB athletes secured an incredible 65 medals – including 14 Golds – in the Olympic Games in Paris.
And it doesn’t stop there, as next week we look forward to the Paralympic Games and cheer on our ParalympicsGB team in their quest for sporting success.
Team GB 50ps going for gold
*** SOLD OUT IN LESS THAN 2 HOURS ***
We’ve certainly got Olympic Fever here at Change Checker HQ, so you can imagine just how excited we were to team up with none other than a 2024 Gold Medallist to sign the Team GB 50p coins!
Not just a Gold Medallist, but the man chosen to be the Team GB flag bearer at the Paris 2024 closing ceremony!
I’m talking about the incredible Triathlon Gold Medal winner, Alex Yee.
You’ll remember that he was the man falling further and further behind the leader during the Triathlon, with commentators concerned he might not be able to hold on to silver, only to put on the burners and win an incredible gold medal!
We joined forces with Alex to bring you the exclusive Signed 2024 UK Team GB 50p.
Alex Yee has just finished signing the first few pieces over in America where he’s also won the Supertri Boston Triathlon!
SOLD OUT in 90 minutes
Just 500 signed Team GB 50ps will ever be available, and they SOLD OUT in just 90 minutes on pre-order!
Alex Yee’s unforgettable triumph in Paris has already secured his place among Britain’s sporting greats and 500 lucky collectors now own a tangible memory of this historic moment.
Can you think of a better way of owning the official UK Team GB 50p than it being signed by our flag bearer and Olympic Gold Medallist?
And, as well as looking ahead to the start of the Paralympic Games next week, these coins are the perfect way to celebrate Britain’s sporting success this summer.
Missed out?
If you weren’t one of the lucky 500 collectors to secure a signed Team GB 50p, fear not! You can still secure a piece of Olympic history, with the Limited Edition Signed Olympic Print.
Signed by five of Britain’s most legendary Olympic Gold Medallists: Sebastian Coe, Duncan Goodhew, Tessa Sanderson, Daley Thompson, and Allan Wells – this is a true collectors item!
