How valuable are the rarest one pound coins? From the 1986 Flax to the 2011 Edinburgh motif
Here are the coins you need to keep an eye out for if you want to be quids in…
What are the rarest £1 coins?
The government estimated in January last year that around 433 million pound coins are stashed away in people's piggy banks, car ashtrays and down the backs of sofas across the UK.
Below, we look at ten of the rarest £1 coins in circulation that are currently selling on eBay for far more than their face value.
Some coins are currently selling for as much as £34 on the auction site.
2011 Edinburgh £1
According to the blog ChangeChecker, the rarest one pound coin currently in circulation is the Edinburgh £1 which was part of a series of coins depicting the four capital cities of the UK.
The Edinburgh design is the only £1 coin with a mintage below one million – with 935,000 coins in circulation.
On eBay, Edinburgh £1 coins sell for up to £95, though these are for coins in excellent condition. Other Edinburgh coins on the auction site are going for a far more modest price of £5.
2010 London £1
Another coin released as part of the capital cities of the UK series was the London £1.
The coin shows the portrait of the Queen and on the reverse side shows the four official badges of the capital cities of the UK, with a magnified image of the badge of London.
Similar to the Edinburgh coin, London £1 coins in perfect condition sells for up to £68, but most sell for less than £5.
2008 Royal Arms £1
Despite the Royal Arms being a common pound coin design, the 2008 version is actually the third rarest, with 3.9 million in circulation.
Royal Arms coins from 2008 can fetch up to £57 on eBay but some in less good condition can be had for less than a fiver.
2014 Thistle and Bluebell £1
In 2014 two new £1 coins – one for Northern Ireland and one for Scotland – completed a series of four that began in 2013 with coins for England and Wales.
This coin design features the thistle and bluebell for Scotland, and is the fourth rarest coin in the UK.
Coins boxed and in excellent condition can fetch up to £5 on eBay.
2013 Daffodil and Leek £1
This daffodil pound coin was released in 2013 as a floral set alongside a rose pound coin. The daffodil is the national flower of Wales, while the leek is also a national emblem of Wales.
The pair of coins marked the first release of a commemorative £1 since 2011.
Mint condition coins will fetch up to £15 on eBay. Others have sold recently for as little as £1.50.
2013 Rose and Oak £1
The rose 2013 coin featured in the floral coin set alongside the daffodil, and coins in perfect condition can attract bids of up to £15 on eBay. Most coins, however, will fetch around £3.
The design shows the rose and the oak to represent England.
Both the daffodil and rose coins have a mintage of 5.27 million.
These coins can sell for as much as £5 each, but prices will depend on their condition.
2014 Flax and Shamrock £1
The 2014 flax coin was released alongside the thistle coin, to complete the series of four coins that began in 2013 with coins for England and Wales.
The £1 coins continue the tradition of honouring the home nations of Britain featuring familiar floral emblems. But, for the first time ever, they are paired together with other less well-known floral symbols.
This design features the shamrock and flax for Northern Ireland.
It will fetch up to £4 on eBay if the coin is in mint condition and boxed. Others sell for around £2.
2010 Belfast £1
There are more than 6.2 million 2010 Belfast coins in circulation, meaning it is the eighth rarest £1 coin in the UK.
The coin is part of the 'City Series' collection, and will earn sellers up to £84 on eBay.
1988 Crowned Shield £1
This coin depicts one of the UK's heraldic emblems – the royal arms of the queen, surmounted by the crown of St Edward.
There are 7.11 million in circulation and most sell for around £6 on eBay. But if in good condition, the coin can sell for up to £20.
1986 Flax £1
The Northern Ireland £1 coin, the third in the series of four, was introduced into circulation in 1986. The coin's design features the flax plant – the emblem of Northern Ireland.
They sell for about £3 on eBay, while mint condition, boxed coins are going for up to £13.
How can you check the value of a coin?
If you think you’ve got a coin that could fetch a few bob then it’s worth getting it verified.
The Royal Mint can tell if your coin is legit and not counterfeit, but doesn’t do valuations.
Brits who think they have a rare coin need to contact a member of the British Numismatic Trade Association.
But a spokesperson for The Royal Mint told the Sun Online that along with sales of coins, it is considering offering the service in the future due to growing interest from customers.
The move comes as the Royal Mint announced it had bought a stake in Sovereign Rarities Limited, a coin dealership based in Mayfair, as first reported by This is Money.
Sovereign Rarities is comprised of a team of coin specialists, collectively with over one hundred years of experience.
Stanley Gibbons, which specialises in stamp collections, also offers a free valuation service through its rare coin division, called Baldwin’s.
For more common coins you could try selling them online, via a website like eBay.
Here are the most valuable 50p coins in circulation that could bring home £3,000 if flogged together.
Beatrix Potter 50ps, Suffragettes and Battle of Hastings designs are also considered rare and could fetch you a bit of cash.
The Sun Online has published a £1 scarcity index, so you can find out the value of each of the 24 £1 coin designs.
Think you’ve got a rare coin? Here’s our guide to find out if it’s worth a mint and cash in.
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