I have a friend named Chris. Very often I’ll get a WhatsApp from him with a photo of some random coin. I’m not necessarily a coin collector, so I often have to ask what the photo’s about. A few years ago, the messages were a little more frequent than normal and it was primarily down to his newly acquired collection of Beatrix Potter Tale of Peter Rabbit 50p coins.
A bit like yourself, he’d gotten these in his change over a few weeks and was keen to know if any of them were worth more than 50p. The good news is they were and he made quite a few quid selling these on eBay. We’ll get into that further below as both Peter Rabbit and his friends are often worth more than 50p.
What are the Beatrix Potter Tale of Peter Rabbit™ 50p coins?
The Royal Mint often create special coins to commemorate occasions that happen across the UK or to acknowledge people who have contributed to society greatly. There have been some fantastic coins minted over the years including
- Beatrix Potter Tale of Peter Rabbit 50p Coins
- Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2022 UK 50p Brilliant Uncirculated Coin
- Harry Potter 2022 UK 50p Brilliant Uncirculated Colour Coin
To commemorate the 150th anniversary of Beatrix Potter’s birth, the Royal Mint commissioned Emma Noble in 2016 to create designs for the first issue of the Beatrix Potter Tale of Peter Rabbit 50p coins. These coins have become some of the most sought-after by collectors and their popularity has resulted in the Royal Mint releasing various different collections each year since. In 2022, the Royal Mint released a special 2022 UK Peter Rabbit™ £5 coin.
What is the difference between a circulated and uncirculated coin?
When looking at the value of the Beatrix Potter Tale of Peter Rabbit 50p coins, you might see them classified as either circulated or uncirculated. What does this mean? The term uncirculated refers to the condition of the coin. It means that this coin has never been released for use in the regular money supply within the United Kingdom and has been reserved for sale privately. This means it will have no tarnishes or signs of use and should be in pristine condition.
Uncirculated coins are finished to a higher standard than circulating coins
A circulated coin is one that has been put into general use and released to banks across the UK. These will be the coins you find in your change. On occasion, the Royal Mint releases commemorative coins issued to denote special occasions of national importance. Most often these are of a Royal theme.
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When were the Beatrix Potter Tale of Peter Rabbit coins released?
The first limited edition Beatrix Potter Tale of Peter Rabbit 50p coins were released in 2016. This limited edition run saw only 15,000 coins entering circulation. Considering there are around 29 billion British coins in circulation, you can see why this special coin is considered quite rare.
If you want to buy the uncirculated Tale of Peter Rabbit 50p, you can do this by visiting the Royal Mint website and purchasing one directly. However below we’ll focus on those coins that entered circulation, that may be worth more than 50p.
2016 Beatrix Potter Circulation 50p
This first-in-the-series portrait coin was issued to celebrate the life and work of Beatrix Potter on the 150th Anniversary of her birth. Designed by Emma Noble, this 2016 Beatrix Potter 50p is valued between £7 and £9 depending on condition.
2017 Benjamin Bunny 50p
This special edition 50p coin was issued in 2017 to celebrate one of Beatrix Potter’s much-loved characters. Benjamin Bunny’s story is a sequel to ‘The Tale of Peter Rabbit’. 25 million Benjamin Bunny 50p coins were released in 2017, so this coin isn’t deemed ‘rare’. However, an excellent condition circulated coin can reach £2 or £2.50 when sold.
2018 Flopsy Bunny 50p
Celebrating ‘The tale of Flopsy Bunny’, 1,400,000 of these special coins were released in 2018. It is one of 4 commemorative ‘The Tale of Peter Rabbit’ coins released that year and designed again by Emma Noble. If selling an excellent condition circulated coin, you could ask for around £3.50 per coin.
2016 Jemima Puddle-Duck 50p
Designed by Emma Noble, this is the rarest of the Tale of Peter Rabbit 2016 50p coins and features a large Jemima Puddle-Duck character in the centre with wording on the outside. 2,100,000 coins were minted and if you find one of these in your change, an excellent circulated coin could be sold for around £3.50.
2017 Mr Jeremy Fisher 50p
Designed by Emma Noble, this coin features Mr Jeremy Fisher wearing is trademark waterproof mackintosh. 9,900,000 of these coins were minted in 2017 and a circulated excellent condition one should reach £2.50 if being sold.
2016 Mrs Tiggy-Winkle 50p
With 8,800,000 Mrs Tiggy-Winkle 50p coins being minted in 2016, this coin features the large Mrs Tiggy-Winkle character with wording along the outside edge. If you find an excellent condition circulated coin it should be worth £2 to £2.50 when sold.
2018 Mrs Tittlemouse 50p
Only 1,700,000 2018 Mrs Tittlemouse 50p coins were minted and because of this, they are considered one of the rarest Tale of Peter Rabbit 50p coins around. A circulated excellent condition coin currently sells for £3-£3.50 and this is likely to increase over time.
2016 Squirrel Nutkin 50p
Squirrel Nutkin is one of the most sought-after Tale of Peter Rabbit 50p coins due to the character’s popularity. 5,000,000 coins were minted in 2016, so the value isn’t as high as other coins, but an excellent condition circulated coin will still command a 75p to £1 price if sold.
2017 Tom Kitten 50p
One of 4 Beatrix Potter Tale of Peter Rabbit 50p coins released in 2017, this was one of the largest quantities minted with 9,500,000 being released. This coin however can fetch between £2 and £3 depending on the condition when resold.
2018 The Tailor of Gloucester 50p
3,900,000 ‘The Tailor of Gloucester’ 50p coins were minted and released in 2018. In excellent condition, these coins are being sold online up to £3.50, though generally speaking their value is in the £2 range.
2016 Peter Rabbit 50p
The first series of the Tale of Peter Rabbit 50 coins of course featured Peter Rabbit. 9,600,000 of the 2016 Peter Rabbit 50p coins were released into circulation making it the most common of all the current Beatrix Potter 50p coins. These coins rarely sell above 75p because of the volume in circulation today.
2017 The Tale of Peter Rabbit 50p
This special edition 50p coin was issued in 2017 to celebrate one of Beatrix Potter’s much loved characters. ‘The Tale of Peter Rabbit’ was the first of Beatrix Potter’s tales and introduced the mischievous blue-coated bunny to the world. 19,900,000 coins were minted and this still remains one of the most sought-after Beatrix Potter 50p coins around. These coins generally sell for around £1 currently.
2018 Peter Rabbit 50p
Only 1,400,000 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p coins were released into circulation. Designed by Emma Noble, the design features a large Peter Rabbit character munching on radishes. On sale across the internet, these coins fetch £3-£3.50 when in excellent condition.
Why are some Tale of Peter Rabbit coins more expensive than others?
The process of minting coins quite regularly results in errors in the coins. These errors, while regular, only happen in a very small percentage of coins in circulation. This increases the value of the coins and some have been known to sell for many thousands of pounds.
False rarity claims on Peter Rabbit coins
When it comes to the rarity of Peter Rabbit coins there are some false claims surrounding the 2016 Peter Rabbit 50p. Dubbed the ‘Half Whisker’, there are claims that this is a minting error, but the design by Emma Noble very clearly shows that the second from the bottom whisker on the left-hand side of the coin is smaller than the rest. Do not be fooled by this claim.
Recap
Always checking your change for rare or special coins becomes a lot more fun when you start finding ones with a greater value than their normal worth. It takes only a second and as you can see above, the value can be significantly more than their minted worth. A great place to sell your Beatrix Potter Tale of Peter Rabbit 50p coins is on eBay, but there are many places on and offline you can also do this.
