The rare 50p fetching £150 on eBay - how to tell if your coin is valuable

50p coins are seen at the Royal Mint plant (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)50p coins are seen at the Royal Mint plant (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)
50p coins are seen at the Royal Mint plant (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

Rare 50p coins are being sold online for around 300 times their original value.

With 210,000 of the coins in circulation, the 50p Kew Gardens release of 2009 is fetching roughly £150 on the auction site, eBay.

Why were the coin minted?

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Around 210,000 coins were formed to commemorate 250 years of the opening of Kew Gardens in 1759.

On the tails side of the coin, the famous Chinese Pagoda at the Royal Botanic Garden is featured, whilst the Queen's head is on the reverse.

One of the rare 50p coins, listed a starting price of 99p, sold for 300 times its value on eBay recently.

The item was described on the site as a "Kew Gardens 50p genuine 2009 circulated Great Condition Fifty Pence RARE".

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Change checking website, Coin Hunter, puts the average price range for the Kew gardens 50p to be between £150.89 and £161.50, but there have been occasions where the coin sold up to £200.

People are being warned to check the issue date, however, as the coins minted in 2019 have less value with the coins regularly selling on eBay for between £70 and £80.

Are other coins just as valuable?

50ps coins are one of the most collectable in Britain, according to the Royal Mint.

Other valuable 50ps include a series of Olympic sport-themed coins released in 2011 celebrating the London 2012 Games and ones released in 2018 featuring the Beatrix Potter characters Peter Rabbit and Flopsy Bunny.

NationalWorld has a list of some valuable coins currently in circulation.