50p coin sells for £137 on eBay
A bidding war soon got underway
You may have one of these in your house(Image: Max Zolotukhin via Getty Images)
A 50p coin has fetched a whopping 275 times its face value after triggering a bidding frenzy on eBay.
The currency piece was struck in 2009, released to commemorate the 250th anniversary of Kew Gardens. It features the famous Chinese Pagoda on one side and a portrait of the late Queen Elizabeth II on the reverse. With only approximately 210,000 minted by The Royal Mint, it’s highly coveted by collectors.
Specialists value the coin at around £145, suggesting this fortunate eBay vendor might have narrowly missed out. Bidding for the item, described as “Amazingly Rare Kew Gardens Uncirculated 50 Pence Piece”, began at £80.
However, as a 13-way bidding battle commenced, the price climbed steadily before the coin eventually sold for £137.86. Money experts reckon hundreds of thousands of these Kew Gardens coins remain in circulation, making it potentially worthwhile to examine your pockets, purses, and even sofa cushions.
Should you discover a Kew Gardens 50p, the initial step is to verify the date stamped on it. This matters because the Royal Mint released a second run of the coins in 2019 to mark the 50th anniversary of the 50p.
These later versions typically don’t command such high prices, though they’ve been known to sell for approximately £70 or £80 on eBay.
