Posts Tagged ‘12-sided £1’
Could your £1 coin be worth 10 times its face value? The rarest £1 coin revealed
From 1983 until 2017, there were 25 different round pound coin designs issued, until they were removed from circulation in 2017 and replaced by the 12-sided bimetallic £1 coin that we use today. And in 2024 we saw the very first £1 coin featuring King Charles III enter circulation with the Bee £1! But out of all the designs issued over the last 42 years, which is the rarest £1?
£1 Mintage Figures
Scarcity cannot be determined on mintage figures alone, so we created our Scarcity Index which combines this with real collector demand, measured by Change Checker swap data. Our £1 Scarcity Index was set in stone in 2017 following the withdrawal of round pounds from circulation, which you can see here >>
Rarity, however, relates to how many of each coin design were in circulation for collectors to find. And whilst all round £1 coins are no longer in circulation, we can still look at their mintage figures to determine which would have been the hardest to come across.
The rarest £1 coin design
With a shockingly low mintage of just 935,000, the 2011 Scotland: Edinburgh City claims the title of rarest £1 UK coin design!
At just shy of 1 million, you might think the mintage doesn’t seem particularly low, however when compared to the Royal Arms £1 which has a total mintage of 623,304,510 across the years it was issued (1983, 1993, 2003 and 2008) – you would have had to be incredibly lucky to find one in your change!
This coin was part of the Capital Cities series which featured four designs, each representing one of the constituent countries. The reverse designs, by Goldsmith and Jeweller to the Queen, Stuart Devlin all feature the official badges of the capital cities of the United Kingdom, the Scotland: Edinburgh City £1 featuring Edinburgh Castle and rock in the centre, with three flags flying from the towers.
The Wales: Cardiff City £1 comes in second place with a mintage of 1,615,000 and the England: London City £1 is the third rarest with a mintage of 2,635,000. So the Capital City series is sure to be a popular ones with collectors looking for a rare gem!
How much is an Edinburgh £1 worth?
Although round pound coins were withdrawn from circulation in 2017, it was reported in 2020 that almost 170 million round £1 coins didn’t make it back to the Royal Mint. So whilst they’re no longer legal tender, they can technically still be found in your change!
And if you have an Edinburgh £1 in your collection, it could fetch you a pretty penny on the secondary market.
A look at recent sold listings on eBay revealed that a 2011 Scotland: Edinburgh City £1 could fetch you up to £9.99, almost 10 times its face value!
Do you have any rare round pound coins in your collection? Let us know in the comments!
Gaps in your round pound collection?
If you’re missing any of the 25 round pound designs, our Mystery Round Pound bundle is the best way to fill any gaps. Each bundle includes 3 random round pounds, meaning you’ll have all the fun of a coin hunt, plus you can save up to 17% compared to buying them individually!
Try your hand at our Mystery Round Pound Bundle for just £20 post free! >>
Spot the difference! Variations in the 12 sided £1 explained
Since their introduction in 2017, a common query we get is people asking about variations in their 12 sided £1 coins.
Having read David Groom’s fascinating articles in Coin News Magazine, we’ve found the key facts which explain these variations, what to look for, and why they might have occurred.
We know that of the 1.75 billion 12 sided £1 coins struck for circulation between 2016 and 2022, roughly half a billion are dated 2016.
Of course, having such a high mintage figure must lead to varieties in design and quality of striking, however in the Coin News examination of just 40 randomly selected 12 sided £1 coins, an extraordinary number of varieties appeared…
Edges
Perhaps the most talked about variation with the 12 sided £1 is the milling on the edge of the coin, with ‘lefties’ being a common error in the milling process.
Obverses
Groom’s article suggested four clear variations can be found on the obverse of the coin, including the position of the design and text.
Reverses
Groom also highlighted the four clear features of difference on the reverses of the £1 coins.
Misalignment
One of the most common variations seems to be misalignment of the coins, particularly where the outer and inner sections do not align properly.
Dates
We’ve spoken before in our blog about the dual-dated £1 coins, with one such coin being valued at £3,000. Groom also mentions that many examples of the 2016 pound coin have the date numbers very poorly struck, making the date hard to read.
Royal Mint Trial Coins
Trial coins are issued when new coin specifications are being tested, but they should not enter circulation. These coins feature the words ‘The Royal Mint’ and ‘Trial Piece’.
Back in 2018, a 2015 dated trial 12-sided £1 coin sold on eBay for a whopping £500! However, looking at eBay listing in 2025, these coins are selling for much more reasonable prices, with the exception of a 2014 trial coin which sold for £235.
Whilst there are clearly a number of variations to be found in the 12 sided £1 coins, Coin News suggests that these may arise from off centre striking, or be due to the different characteristics from the two metals of the bimetallic coin.
Have you found an interesting variation in any 12-sided £1 coins you’ve found? Let us know in the comments!
– Credit ‘Up close, the new 12 sided £1 coin’ – David Groom, Coin News, April and May 2018
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Why this “error” is the hardest to find yet. Plus what it might be worth…
In 2017, following reports by Change Checker and in the national press that a die mix up at The Royal Mint resulted in a number of 12 sided £1 coins being struck with dual-dates, The Royal Mint officially confirmed the error.
However, this is one of the hardest errors to spot. That’s because even with 20/20 eyesight you will struggle to see the incorrect date on the coin’s reverse because it’s micro-engraved as part of the coin’s ultra-secure finish.
What do I need to look for?
Firstly, although both 2016 and 2017 obverse-dated £1 coins entered circulation in April 2017, the die-error mix up appears to have only occurred on a limited number of coins with a 2016 date on the Queen’s head side.
So it’s worth checking any 2016 coins. You’ll need to look just inside the rim of the design-side of the coin, where you will see some tiny writing. You’ll almost certainly need a microscope to properly see the writing, which should reveal the date.
You’re looking for a 2016 obverse-dated coin with 2017 micro-engraving on the reverse.
What if I can’t read the micro-engraving?
With over 1.75 billion 12-sided £1 coins being struck between 2016 and 2022, not all coins are finished perfectly. Unfortunately, a poorly struck example where you cannot read the micro-engraving is not of great interest to collectors.
What about other £1 mis-strikes and errors?
We believe this is the only known £1 error. Due to the huge number of coins that have entered circulation, there are a number of interesting mis-strikes, which, although numismatically interesting, have relatively limited collectability or value.
More worryingly, there are a number of altered £1 coins for sale, claiming to have misaligned heads or similar unusual errors. However, both these are likely to have transgressed the Coinage Act by tampering with the coin and are clear minting impossibilities. STEER WELL CLEAR is our advice. Similarly, beware of photographs that purport to show a genuine Dual-dated £1 coin – you need to be confident you’re not simply looking at two different coins.
So how much is a Dual-dated £1 Coin worth?
This remains the most difficult question to answer, but let’s take a look at the available information.
- How many were struck?
The Royal Mint has given no indication of how many Dual-dated £1 Coins ever went into circulation – and it’s quite likely they do not even know. We’ve not seen any examples amongst our stock. Equally, 1,500,000,000 2016 £1 coins were struck and rates of 1,800 coins per minute were achieved at the height of production.
The key number seems to be how many coins The Royal Mint strike before they replace a die. Given the nature of the “error” it seems likely that it was only corrected when the die was replaced. Understandably, the number of coins The Royal Mint strikes with each blank is not something the Mint chooses to share for commercial reasons.
- What are the comparables?
The key to any valuation is what comparable coins sell for. The most obvious comparable is the 2008 undated 20p, which was caused by a similar die mix up. That sells online for up to £64.
Other interesting UK errors include “Silver” 2p coins, which have sold in recent years for as much as £1,400, but these are considerably rarer, relying on a few old 10p blanks being left over when a blank barrel has been filled with new 2p blanks. Another 2 pence error, when some 2p pieces were struck using the old decimalisation dies with the word “NEW” in front of “PENCE”, have sold for around £60.
- So what is a Dual-dated £1 Coin worth?
We understand that at least one example was sold for £2,500 to a buyer in Spain in 2017, which probably marks the likely ceiling for value.
Probably more Dual-dated £1 coins have been struck than the 2p coins. However, the error is particularly difficult to spot due to the size of the micro-engraving. Bearing all that in mind, our best value estimate for a Dual-dated £1 Coin in excellent condition is currently £300 – £500.
Finding the coin in your change
We’ve heard from two Change Checkers lucky enough to find a dual dated error, one in October 2018 and one in April 2019.
I’m sure that the challenge of finding a dual dated £1 coin has sparked many Change Checker’s interest in collecting coins and I’m sure will encourage more collectors out there to look more closely at their £1 coins.
If you’ve come across an interesting coin in your change, be sure to get in touch with us. We’d love to hear about the rare coins you’ve found!
Find out more about your coins
If you’re interested in coin collecting, our Change Checker web app is completely free to use!