Greenwich Mean Time 10p (Letter G)
The Greenwich Mean Time 10p (Letter G) is a circulating A to Z 10p with 304,000 made. Value band: small premium. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2018
- Circulation mintage
- 304,000
- Value band
- Small premium
- Composition
- Nickel-plated steel
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a Greenwich Mean Time 10p (Letter G) worth?
The A to Z 10p coins were made in small runs for circulation (220,000 dated 2018 and 84,000 dated 2019 for this letter). They were made to be collected. A circulated Greenwich Mean Time 10p brings a small premium to collectors filling a set, more for the scarcer 2019 date and more again in uncirculated condition.
What would make yours worth more:
- The scarcer 2019 date
- Uncirculated condition
- An original collector card or pack
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the Greenwich Mean Time 10p (Letter G) rare?
- It is scarcer than most A to Z 10p coins. Collectors pay a small premium for good examples.
- How many Greenwich Mean Time 10p (Letter G) coins were made?
- 304,000 were struck for circulation.
- What is the Greenwich Mean Time 10p (Letter G) made of?
- Nickel-plated steel. It weighs 6.5 g and measures 24.5 mm.
- Is the Greenwich Mean Time 10p (Letter G) still legal tender?
- Yes. Every A to Z 10p is legal tender in the UK at face value.
Why the Greenwich Mean Time 10p (Letter G) was made
King Charles II founded the Royal Observatory at Greenwich in 1675 to help sailors work out their longitude at sea. Astronomers there spent the next two centuries charting the stars and keeping precise time. When the railways spread in the 1840s, the many different local times across Britain caused chaos with timetables, so the railways adopted Greenwich time across their networks. In 1880 it became the legal time for Great Britain.
The world followed. At the International Meridian Conference in Washington in 1884, delegates chose the line passing through Greenwich as the Prime Meridian, longitude zero, the starting point for measuring east and west around the globe. Time zones were then set as hours ahead of or behind Greenwich Mean Time. Visitors to the observatory today can stand with one foot in each hemisphere on the line marked in the courtyard. The Shepherd Gate Clock beside the entrance still shows the time to passersby. G for Greenwich Mean Time was the Royal Mint's choice for the seventh letter of its 2018 A to Z 10p series. It is one of the more scientific subjects in a set otherwise heavy on food and landmarks.
How to recognize it
A capital G joins a design on the theme of timekeeping at Greenwich, linking the letter to the clocks and the meridian that made the observatory famous. As with every coin in the set, it is a nickel-plated steel 10p, 24.5 mm across and weighing 6.5 g, with a milled edge. The other side shows the fifth portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, by Jody Clark, with the year in the inscription around it. There are two years to look for, 2018 and 2019. Since the design is the same on both, the date is the only way to tell them apart.
The other side carries Jody Clark's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, introduced in 2015 and the last of her reign.
Greenwich Mean Time 10p (Letter G) by the numbers
In mintage terms the Greenwich Mean Time 10p (Letter G) ranks 12th lowest of 26 circulating A to Z 10p coins with a published mintage. The next scarcer is the Fish and Chips 10p (Letter F) (304,000); the next more common is the Houses of Parliament 10p (Letter H) (304,000).
It was the only circulating commemorative A to Z 10p dated 2018.
Of the 304,000 Greenwich Mean Time 10p coins, 220,000 are dated 2018 and 84,000 are dated 2019. About 2.6 coins were dated 2018 for every one dated 2019, which makes 2019 the date to look for.
What to check on your Greenwich Mean Time 10p (Letter G)
- Confirm the letter and picture: G for Greenwich Mean Time, with the date 2018 or 2019.
- Check the date. The 2019 coins had much smaller runs, so the same letter is scarcer with a 2019 date.
- Look at the surfaces under a light: coins from collector packs have unbroken luster, while change-worn coins show scuffs on the letter and design.
- Keep sets in order in a holder rather than loose; scratches on the large flat letter are easy to see.
Greenwich Mean Time has a 2018 mintage of 220,000 and a 2019 mintage of 84,000, in line with most letters in the series. For a 10p those are small numbers. A typical year of standard 10p production runs far higher, so any A to Z coin is scarce in that sense. The 2019 date is the scarcer of the two, as fewer were made and many were caught by collectors as soon as they appeared. Bright, unscratched coins are the ones worth hunting for.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 10 pence |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2018 |
| Circulation mintage | 304,000 |
| Composition | Nickel-plated steel |
| Weight | 6.5 g |
| Diameter | 24.5 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Milled |
| Portrait | Clark |
Other 2018 A to Z 10p coins
Frequently asked questions
What does the G 10p stand for?
G stands for Greenwich Mean Time, the time kept at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich. In 1884 the meridian through Greenwich was chosen as longitude zero. World time zones are still counted from it.
How many Greenwich Mean Time 10p coins were minted?
There were 220,000 made with the 2018 date and 84,000 with the 2019 date. Look at the date next to the Queen's portrait to see which version you have, since the reverse design does not change.
Mintage figures: Ten pence (British coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.