Poignant sketched phrase on £2 coin that makes it worth up to THIRTEEN times more – do you have one in your wallet?
YOUR £2 coin may be worth up to thirteen times its face value if it contains a specific poignant sketched phrase on it.
The inscription on the coin comes from a poem published in 1919 following the death of its author at the end of the First World War.
The poem was written by Wilfred Owen, a leading poet and soldier from the Great War.
He died just a week before its end in 1918 but wrote a number of poems that gained acclaim for their harrowing depictions of conflict.
The extract featured on the coin is taken from his work ‘Strange Meeting’, published posthumously in 1919.
The statement reads: “The truth untold, the pity of war.”
The coin was specially released in 2018 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the armistice of the First World War.
Listings of the coin on eBay have attracted huge attention, with some selling at many times their face value.
One that sold this month had 10 bids and was eventually bought for £23.
Another sold in July saw 12 bids and a final price of £26, thirteen times the coin’s face value.
The coin was part of the final year of commemoration in The Royal Mint’s five-year series and features a design by artist Stephen Raw.
His design was modelled in clay taken from the Sambre-Oise Canal where Owen was killed in 1918.
This is not the only rare £2 piece out there, however.
A set of £2 coins commissioned for the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester frequently attract sale prices of more than £50 online.
One sold for £57 on July 3 – which is 28 times more than it’s value.
The most valuable coin in the set is the Queen Elizabeth II £2: Commonwealth Games Northern Ireland.
The coin’s main feature is a sketch of a running woman accompanied by the flag of Northern Ireland.
We list some of the other most valuable £2 coins below.
Most valuable £2 coins
We reveal the most valuable £2 coins and how much they've sold for in the past.
2002 Commonwealth Games Northern Ireland – £60
In 2002, four different designs of this £2 coin were created to commemorate the Commonwealth games, but the Irish version is the rarest with only 485,500 minted.
We’ve seen this coin listed for as much as £60 on eBay in May with one bid.
There’s more money on the line if you’ve got the complete set though.
One seller proved this right when all four coins went for a whopping £100.
2002 Commonwealth Games England – £35
Another in the 2002 Commonwealth series, the English version is one of the rarest coins in circulation.
Some 650,500 were minted at the time, making the coin rare enough for eBay bidders to happily pay as much as £35 for it.
The edge of this coin also has the inscription “Spirit of Friendship, Manchester 2002″, which adds appeal to collectors too.
One recently went on the market on eBay for £27 with one bid.
2002 Commonwealth Games Wales – £27
With only 588,500 put into circulation, the 2002 Commonwealth Games Wales £2 coin celebrates Wales’ achievements in the event.
The piece features a figure in motion holding a banner, encircling the Welsh flag.
It is the fourth rarest in the Commonwealth set and the fourth rarest in the overall list.
We’ve seen one sell on eBay for £26.97 in May this year with 10 bids.
London 2012 Handover – £35
At the end of each Olympic Games, the next host city of the Games is celebrated with a flag handover ceremony.
In 2012 we gave the flag to Rio to take on the next tournament.
That event was immortalised on the design of a £2 coin, with just 845,000 released into circulation.
We saw one sell for £35 on eBay this month after 10 bids.
Olympic centenary – £37.95
Carrying on the sporting theme, the Olympic centenary £2 marked 100 years of the modern games in 2008.
There are 910,000 in circulation so finding one isn’t such a tough ask.
We’ve seen one version sell on eBay for £37.95 in February.
2002 Commonwealth Games Scotland – £24.97
Out of all of the valuable Commonwealth coins, Scotland’s is the sixth rarest out of all rare £2 coins.
It has a mintage of 771,750 – some 286,250 more than were released in the Irish version.
It features pretty much the same design as the other coins in the series but the Scottish flag is on the design instead.
Bidders on eBay have still paid higher than face value, we’ve seen one version sell on eBay for £24.97 in May.
Olympic handover – £9.99
Still in the top ten is the Olympic Handover coin.
This £2 details Beijing in 2008 handing over the Olympics to London in 2012, and shows the Olympic flag and two hands shaking.
One sold for precisely £9.99 in May on eBay with one bid.
There are 918,000 of these in circulation.
King James Bible – £23.95
Next on the list is a coin showing the King James Bible.
One was for £23.95 in May on eBay with one bid.
According to Change Checker, there are 975,000 in circulation.
Mary Rose – £19.50
A circulated £2 showing the famous Mary Rose ship sold on eBay for £19.50.
There are just over one million in circulation, and it lands ninth on Change Checker’s scarcity index.
2015 First World War (Navy) – £10.50
There were also 650,000 of the First World War Navy £2 coins minted in 2015.
The coin features a battleship design by military artist David Rowlands and the 5th portrait of the Queen.
It’s also the second in a five-coin series remembering the First World War and celebrates the efforts of the Royal Navy and their contribution to the war effort.
One sold on eBay in May for £10.50 with two bids.
Great Fire of London – £14.95
The Great Fire of London £2 coin was first put into circulation in 2016 to mark the 350th anniversary of the historic event.
The reverse side of the piece was designed by Aaron West, depicting the city of London burning.
The coin wasn’t always considered so rare, but it has since transpired its mintage figure was incorrectly published.
A recent auction on eBay saw the piece go for £14.95 with one bid.