![]() I originally thought the 2016 Peter Rabbit 50p with ‘extra whisker’ was a die crack. on the so-called ‘cat on mast’ 2015 Royal Navy commemorative £2. Cracked dies have resulted in a recent coin anomalies where the crack happen to look like an extra feature, e.g. The lines often pass through raised design elements like lettering and can sometimes run right to the edge of the coin. The line can turn into a larger blob if the faulty die isn’t changed and breaks further. Instead of a blob, a cracked die results in a thin raised line on the surface of a coin. the die that was used to strike the coin is damaged through excessive use. Die chips can be more interesting if they resemble something that looks intentional see also die cracks, below. Larger die breaks that also involve the rim are known as cuds. Perhaps they are saving money by using dies beyond their normal accepted lifetime or by not properly ensuring that coins are of high enough quality before they end up in circulation. Die chips on earlier coins are rarer, which seems to indicate to me that the Royal Mint procedure for striking coins has changed over the years. They are usually on a raised part of the design as opposed to on the lowest flat areas. Die chips are raised blob-like lumps on the surface of the coin. The die chip at the bottom of this 2008 20p very much resembles an upside down ‘1’. If you have an error coin that is not shown and can provide good quality images, please let me know. ![]() There are other types of UK error coins and this list is not meant to be comprehensive. Here are some error types that I have observed on UK error coins over the years. Minor UK error coins (and non errors) include: To be able to spot shed-made ‘errors’ it’s important to understand how coins are made, especially the bi-metallic £2 and £1 coins (some more on that further down). Unfortunately, due in part to the demand fuelled by the tabloid stories and people not really understanding what they are buying, many have paid too much money for ruined coins that technically no longer even have a valid face value. This is essentially post-mint damage and is something which has been especially rife with the new 12-sided £1 coin. The recent increase in interest and higher demand for UK error coins has also prompted many unscrupulous people to create home made error coins that have clearly been manipulated and were not originally made like that. ![]() Some error coins end up being exposed in the press (and many aren’t actually errors at all!), usually as a result of people asking silly inflated prices for coins on eBay, that are completely utopian and where ‘sales’ at such prices are unverifiable and are very often not genuine or completed. More suspected error coins are being discovered, shown and discussed. People are now able to instantly share images of unusual coins on social media, prompting others to look for unusual coins. An increase in people collecting coins has lead to more people looking closer at coins and noticing errors. An extra factor that plays a big role with error coins is their severity or unusualness.Įrror coins have never really been a big deal in the UK until recently where interest in them has grown. That worth is strongly influenced by a number of factors including demand, rarity and the attractiveness of the error. UK error coins, just like normal coins, are only worth what someone is willing to pay for them. Most error coins are usually fairly low value and many minor errors can be picked up for just a few pounds. Ignore the headline grabbing stories about error coins that are worth ‘a fortune’ that the tabloid/clickbait press push out. UK error coins are a fascinating and still fairly non mainstream side-line to regular coin collecting. ![]()
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