A new set of 50p coins will be released to honour the British military.
To celebrate fifty years of the distinctive 50p, The Royal Mint has unveiled a special collection of commemorative military coins that will be struck to mark the anniversary of the revolutionary seven-sided coin, first used in 1969.
The collection includes five 50ps which span one thousand years of history.
The 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, 50 years since the D-Day Landings, the 950th anniversary of the Battle of Hastings and 150 years since the Victoria Cross was introduced are all honoured on the coins.
Some of the sets will be incredibly rare, and will no doubt fetch huge sums of money in years to come.
Only 75 gold proof sets have been created, and the price reflects their rarity at £3,825.
Silver proof sets will cost £225 and 1969 have been produced.
A proof coin set costs £90 and five of the brilliant uncirculated coins cost £45.
Nicola Howell, Director of the Consumer Business at The Royal Mint, commented: “The distinctive design of the 50p has become hugely popular since it was introduced in Britain 50 years ago. Over the years, it’s been fantastic to launch commemorative versions of this popular coin to mark significant cultural and historic events for the nation.
“Following the launch of the cultural commemorative 50p set earlier this year, we’re delighted to be revealing this special 50p military set to reflect on some of Britain’s most historic military achievements.”
Which coins are included?
The 75th Anniversary of the Battle of Britain
For three months during 1940, RAF planes duelled with Goering’s Luftwaffe in the skies above Britain. This coin honours those who lost their lives in the skies fighting for Britain and its allies.
The 50th Anniversary of the D-Day Landings
To mark the 50th anniversary since the D-Day Landings, The Royal Mint released this design commemorating the largest amphibious assault in military history and the unflinching bravery of those who took part.
The 150th Anniversary of the Victoria Cross
Introduced in 1856 thanks to the support of Queen Victoria’s husband Prince Albert, the Victoria Cross is the highest award for gallantry that British servicemen and servicewomen can receive.
The 150th Anniversary of the Victoria Cross (Heroic Acts)
Before the Crimean War only senior officers could be awarded medals for bravery. With war correspondents working in the field for the first time, a movement to recognise the valour of the common soldier gathered momentum. Since its inception in 1856, more than 1,300 Victoria Crosses have been awarded for outstanding acts of heroism, testament to the extreme bravery of Armed Forces personnel who risk life and limb in defence of Britain’s interests.
The 950th Anniversary of the Battle of Hastings
This 50 pence piece was unveiled in 2016 to mark 950 years since one of the most infamous battles in British history. Famously documented on the Bayeux Tapestry, Anglo-Saxon and Norman forces clashed at the Battle of Hastings.
A Benjamin Bunny 50p coin was selling for £4,500, but is it really that rare?
The coin on sale was the Benjamin Bunny 50p from the 2017 collection of Beatrix Potter coins.
Beatrix Potter coins were first released in 2016 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the author’s birth, and there have been new ones released each year since.
Although the coin might be interesting to many people, it is not necessarily worth as much as suggested.
Which are the rarest £1, £2, 50p, 20p, 10p and 2p coins?
Rarest £2 coins
The rarest £2 coin is the 2002 Commonwealth Games NI coin with 485,500 in circulation. This is followed by the 2002 Commonwealth Games Wales which has 588,500 in circulation.
Next up is the 2015 Navy, and there are 650,000 in circulation.
Rarest £1 coins
The most rare £1 coins are all part of a series celebrating the British capitals.
The rarest of these is the 2011 Edinburgh coin, with 935,000 in circulation. Of the 2011 Cardiff coins there are 1,615,000 in circulation, while the 2010 London coin has 2,635,000 in circulation.
Rarest 50p coin
The rarest 50p coin is the Kew Gardens coin, which is also the rarest coin in circulation. It there were only 210,000 minted.
The football Olympic 50p coin has 1,125,500 in circulation, and the wrestling coin has 1,129,500 in circulation.
It is not so easy to evaluate the rarest 20p coins, 10p coins and even 2p coins as exact circulation figures are not known.
However, various versions of the coins are known to sell for large sums.
These include the dateless 20ps, which are actually part of a run from 2008. There may be between 50,000 and 200,000 of these coins in circulation.
The 1983 ‘New Pence’ 2p coin can also sell for a huge sum, up to £650.