How do you spot a rare £2 coin and how much is it worth?
Printing errors and rare editions could mean a huge windfall for those who keep an eye on their change
Rare and defective £2 coins have become highly sought-after by collectors meaning that your loose change could be worth well over its original value.
One such two pound coin shows the Queen's head rotated clockwise by around 150 degrees, a printing error that is estimated to affect just 3,000 coins, reports the Daily Mirror.
The Royal Mint says the misalignment is "almost certainly the result of one of the dies working loose and rotating during the striking process".
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Last December it also emerged that there were another 17,000 "Mule Britannia" £2 coins that had the distinctive ridges around their edge missing.
"You can identify the coin by checking the front face, a portrait of the Queen, to see if the rim is missing dents," says The Sun.
Alex O'Connor from the money website Coining It In warns that the "small imperfection might go unnoticed in day-to-day transactions" – so keep an eye on your change.
Other error coins that have been known to change hands for huge sums include the 2012 London Olympics Aquatics 50p, which could fetch more than £1,000 according to the Sun Online.
Earlier this year, an ultra-rare silver 2p error coin was found by a collector in Kent, and it could be worth a whopping £1,350 says the paper.
How much are the coins worth?
O'Connor says the coins could be worth as much as £350. "The £2 error coins happened as a result of a die error during production, which occurs when the dies have become misaligned.
"Although quality control usually catch it, sometimes they slip through, and in this instance the mistake could be worth between £100-£350."
Are there any other rare £2 coins?
According to The Sun there are 37 different £2 designs currently in circulation which could fetch up to 100 times their face value – or £50.
In general the rare the coin the more valuable it is and it help collectors ChangeChecker has compiled a Scarcity Index of the rarest ones to look out for.
Topping the list is the 2002 Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games coin. Just 485,500 entered circulation, a surprisingly low number considering “the average mintage sees around five million of each commemorative £2 coin struck for circulation”, says the Royal Mint.
The other three 2002 Commonwealth Games £2 coins and two London Underground £2 coins are also quite rare while others to look out for include the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Handover designs.
Recently sold £2 Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games coins sold on eBay went for up to £50 while a full set that includes English, Scottish and Welsh version could go for more than £100.
The Daily Express also says that £2 coins created to celebrate a tercentenary, such as the one minted in 1994 to celebrate the 300-anniversary of the Bank of England is particularly valuable.
Other limited-runs that have sold for significantly more than their face value include the recently issued 2016 Shakespeare Tragedy £2, the 2016 Great Fire of London £2, and the King James Bible designs which ChangeChecker says “are a big hit with collectors”.
Where can you sell your coins?
eBay could be your best bet, but it's worth getting the coin valued first by an expert before you put it up for auction.
According to Philip Mussell, director of Coin News, the best time to sell is usually as soon as possible due to the demand increasing as people become aware of the coin's rarity.
"The thing you have to understand is how much demand there is, how many collectors want one," he says.
"Demand is highest at the beginning because that's when those collectors are looking for them."
The Royal Numismatic Society has a list of reputable coin collectors on their website so it's also worth checking there before you sell.
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