2009 Robert Burns £2 Coin
The 2009 Robert Burns £2 is a circulating £2 with 3.25 million made. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2009
- Circulation mintage
- 3,253,000
- Value band
- Face value
- Designer
- The Royal Mint Engraving Team
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 2009 Robert Burns £2 worth?
3.25 million were made, so the 2009 Robert Burns £2 is easy to find. A circulated one is worth face value; collectors pay a little more only for uncirculated coins and coins still in their original Royal Mint pack.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with crisp edge lettering
- Original Royal Mint pack or presentation folder
- A genuine mint error such as a misaligned or wrong edge, confirmed by an expert
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 2009 Robert Burns £2 rare?
- No. 3.25 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 2009 Robert Burns £2 coins were made?
- 3,253,000 were struck for circulation.
- Who designed the 2009 Robert Burns £2?
- The design is credited to The Royal Mint Engraving Team.
- What is the 2009 Robert Burns £2 made of?
- Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring. It weighs 12.0 g and measures 28.4 mm.
- Is the 2009 Robert Burns £2 still legal tender?
- Yes. Every two-metal £2 coin, commemoratives included, is legal tender in the UK.
Why the 2009 Robert Burns £2 was made
Robert Burns was born in Alloway, Ayrshire, on 25 January 1759 and died in Dumfries in 1796, aged just 37. In that short life he became Scotland's national poet, writing in Scots as well as English. His birthday is still marked every January with Burns Night suppers of haggis, whisky and recited verse, both in Scotland and among Scots living abroad.
The 250th anniversary in 2009 was a big occasion in Scotland, which ran a year of Homecoming events built around it. The Royal Mint marked it with this £2, which went into circulation in large numbers: 3,253,000 were struck for change. Instead of a portrait, the coin uses the poet's own words, picking lines almost everyone knows even if they couldn't say who wrote them. Auld Lang Syne, sung at New Year around the world, is a song Burns collected and reworked from older Scottish tradition. That makes it a fitting choice for a coin meant to pass through millions of hands, since the song itself is about old friendship and shared memory.
How to recognize it
The reverse is all lettering. The center carries a line from Auld Lang Syne in a flowing, handwritten style of script: we'll tak a cup a' kindness yet, for auld lang syne. Above it sits 1759 ROBERT BURNS 1796 with TWO POUNDS at the bottom, both set in plain capitals that contrast with the looser script. There is no portrait of the poet, so if your coin shows a face it is a different issue. The edge reads SHOULD AULD ACQUAINTANCE BE FORGOT, the opening line of the same song, so the edge and the design work as a pair. It was designed by the Royal Mint Engraving Team.
The other side carries Ian Rank-Broadley's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, used from 1998 to 2015.
2009 Robert Burns £2 by the numbers
In mintage terms the 2009 Robert Burns £2 ranks 19th lowest of 42 circulating £2 coins with a published mintage. The next scarcer is the 2013 Guinea £2 (2.99 million); the next more common is the 2014 Trinity House £2 (3.71 million).
For scale, the most common is the 2005 End of World War II (VE Day 60) £2 with 10.2 million, about 3.1 times as many. The scarcest is the 1989 Claim of Right £2 with 381,400, 8.5 times fewer than this one.
It was released in 2009 alongside 1 other circulating £2 design: the Charles Darwin (3.9 million). The 2009 Robert Burns £2 was the scarcest of the year.
What to check on your 2009 Robert Burns £2
- Read the edge. It should say SHOULD AULD ACQUAINTANCE BE FORGOT. A wrong or missing edge inscription is the quickest sign of a counterfeit.
- Check the two metals: a silver-colored center and a gold-colored ring, with the ring tight and level all the way around.
- Weigh it: a genuine two-metal £2 weighs 12.0 g. Fakes are often a little light and softer in detail.
- Compare the portrait and lettering with a known genuine coin. Blurry letters, a flat portrait or uneven spacing point to a copy.
With more than 3.2 million made, the Burns £2 is a common coin and a worn one is face value. That makes it a good first coin for a young collector. Uncirculated examples, without the dulling and scratches of daily use, can carry a small premium. Fakes of a coin this ordinary aren't a big concern, though it still pays to check that the edge reads SHOULD AULD ACQUAINTANCE BE FORGOT. The design also appeared in Royal Mint collector sets for 2009. Those coins have a brighter finish than anything you'll pull from a till, with sharp edges on every letter of the script.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 2 pounds |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2009 |
| Circulation mintage | 3,253,000 |
| Composition | Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring |
| Weight | 12.0 g |
| Diameter | 28.4 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Lettered: SHOULD AULD ACQUAINTANCE BE FORGOT |
| Designer | The Royal Mint Engraving Team |
| Portrait | Rank-Broadley |
Other 2009 £2 coins
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 Charles Darwin £2 Coin | 3,903,000 | Face value |
Frequently asked questions
What does the writing on the Robert Burns £2 say?
The center reads we'll tak a cup a' kindness yet, for auld lang syne, a line from Auld Lang Syne. Around it you'll find 1759 ROBERT BURNS 1796 and TWO POUNDS, while the edge carries the song's famous first line.
Is the 2009 Burns £2 still legal tender?
Yes. Commemorative £2 coins remain legal tender, so the Burns coin can still be spent or banked like any other £2. Most people keep one because it's an attractive design rather than because it's scarce.
Mintage figures: Two pound coin (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.