A RARE 50p coin has sold for an astonishing £115 on eBay

This auction featured a genuine 2009 circulated Kew Gardens 50p in good condition.

A RARE 50p coin has sold for an astonishing £115 on eBay - that's 230 times its face value - and it might just be hiding in your spare change.

The auction featured a genuine 2009 circulated Kew Gardens 50p in good condition. It attracted six bids before the hammer came down at £115.

The sale has taken place online and has caught the attention of collectors across London and beyond, who are always on the lookout for rare finds in coins.

The Kew Gardens 50p is widely considered the holy grail of British coin collecting.

Just 210,000 of these special coins were released into circulation back in 2009, making it the rarest 50p piece ever issued by The Royal Mint.

With such low numbers, the odds of one turning up in your change are extremely slim - but not impossible.

The reverse of the coin features a detailed image of the famous Chinese Pagoda at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, with a leafy vine spiralling around the structure. It was designed by T Pang.

The obverse shows the late Queen Elizabeth II, designed by Ian Rank-Broadley.

Another Kew 50p recently fetched £134.07 after 19 bids, while similar examples have seen bids starting at £79 depending on the condition. As always, a coin is only worth what someone is willing to pay, but demand for this one remains high.

It's worth noting that this 2009 version is the original and was actually put into circulation. A second version of the coin was released in 2019 as part of a commemorative set, but it was never intended for everyday use. The newer coin carries the same pagoda design but features a different portrait of the Queen by Mary Gillick and the 2019 date.

Even the 2019 proof version can go for decent sums, one recently sold for £82 after 11 bids. But it's the original 2009 piece that collectors value most.

The Kew Gardens 50p was launched to celebrate 250 years since the gardens opened in 1759.

Today, the UNESCO World Heritage Site remains one of Britain’s most iconic attractions, boasting treetop walkways, greenhouses, and historic buildings. It's also home to an incredible 275,000 plants from all over the world.

The coins are still proving popular with collectors and high prices are still being paid for them at auction.