A RARE 25P COIN GOES ON SALE IN ROYAL WOOTTON BASSETT TOMORROW

AN ultra-rare coin that looks like an ordinary 20p but is actually a rare 25p coin goes under the hammer tomorrow. (Sept 25)

It was found by a local man who is not a coin collector, when he was given it in some change a few years ago. 

The experts at RWB Auctions in Royal Wootton Bassett's High Street, expect to sell the scarce experimental coin for between £500 and £700 .

The coin is the same shape as a 20p, with a shield on one side and the Sovereign’s Orb on the other. It is thought to have been made by skilled craftsmen at the UK’s Royal Mint before the denomination was officially released into circulation in 1982. At the time, authorities had not decided whether the coin would be worth 20p or 25p.

Coin experts call experimental coins like this one a ‘trial piece’ or a ‘pattern coin’. Since only a handful are made, they are sought after by serious collectors looking to acquire real rarities.

It has been estimated that no more than 50 of these 25p trial pieces survive with even fewer confirmed to be made from nickel brass like the coin going under the hammer in September.

That makes this coin significantly rarer than the famous Kew Gardens 50p, of which 210,000 were made.

It will be sold as part of a specialist sale of historic and modern currency, organised by RWB Auctions, which has a track record for selling the rarest UK error coins. The auction house, which only launched in January of this year, has previously hit the headlines for selling a scarce Lord Kitchener £2 for £1,000 and an unusual Olympics 50p for £1,500.

Youtuber Christopher Collects, who works as a coin expert for RWB Auctions, said:

“This is a fascinating piece not just for the rarity but as a glimpse of what our currency could have been. 20p coins are a fixture in our change now, but the Royal Mint seems to have experimented with various ideas before they settled on the seven-sided coin we all recognise.

“Trial pieces are best thought of as experimental coins minted to see if they would work in circulation. They would have been used to demonstrate the concept of a new coin to officials and may have been sent out to businesses that handle lots of cash to try out. Think of companies that make vending machines or operate parking meters.

“This trial coin could easily be mistaken for a 20p, but we are certain it will sell for a lot more than that. While there are not many of these experimental 25p pieces out there, it's worth checking your change to ensure you haven’t been handed a rare and valuable coin!”