Rare 25p Coin Could Be Worth £1,700 – Here's How to Spot It

An expert has urged Brits to check their wallets and jars at home for a valuable coin worth £1,700

A valuable coin worth £1,700 could be hiding in your wallet or jar at home. At first glance this coin could look like a standard 20 pence piece, but there is far more to it than meets the eye.

The Coin Collector UK took to social media platform TikTok to explain more about the rare 25 pence coin that was created as part of a trial in 1981. The coin is thought to have been made by Royal Mint craftsmen before the 20p denomination was put into circulation in 1982.

At the time, it was not decided whether the coin would be worth 20p or 25p.

The Coin Collector said: “£1,700 pounds for this trial 25 pence coin. Yes, you heard correctly, this is a 25 pence trial piece. The Royal Mint almost opted for a 25 pence before changing last minute and going with the well-recognized, 20 pence, identical in design to this trial coin.

“This rare specimen recently sold at auction for over three times its estimate. Experts believed that it would fetch anywhere from £500 to 700 but it ended up going for the huge sum of £1,700 pounds.”

He explained that not many of them were released into circulation. “There are thought to be no more than 50 of these in circulation and even fewer in nickel brass like this one, which was found by a man in Wiltshire who was lucky enough to find it in his change,” he said.

“Trial pieces like this are also often referred to as pattern coins. These are prototype coins, which often never make it into circulation.

“It's this rarity factor that gives them such a high price on the collector's market. So get checking your 20 pence coins.”