2013 London Underground Train £2 Coin
The 2013 London Underground Train £2 is a circulating £2 with 1.69 million made. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2013
- Circulation mintage
- 1,690,000
- Value band
- Face value
- Designer
- Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby
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 2013 London Underground Train £2 worth?
1.69 million were made, so the 2013 London Underground Train £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 2013 London Underground Train £2 rare?
- No. 1.69 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 2013 London Underground Train £2 coins were made?
- 1,690,000 were struck for circulation.
- Who designed the 2013 London Underground Train £2?
- The design is credited to Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby.
- What is the 2013 London Underground Train £2 made of?
- Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring. It weighs 12.0 g and measures 28.4 mm.
- Is the 2013 London Underground Train £2 still legal tender?
- Yes. Every two-metal £2 coin, commemoratives included, is legal tender in the UK.
Why the 2013 London Underground Train £2 was made
The world's first underground railway opened in London on 10 January 1863, when the Metropolitan Railway began running steam trains between Paddington and Farringdon. Passengers rode in gas lit carriages through tunnels built by digging trenches along the streets and roofing them over. From that first line the network grew into the London Underground, known to everyone as the Tube, now carrying huge numbers of passengers across the capital every day.
For the 150th anniversary in 2013 the Royal Mint issued two £2 coins, one showing a train and the other the famous roundel. This is the train coin, designed by Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby, the pair behind the London 2012 Olympic torch. It was struck in moderate numbers, 1,690,000 for circulation, which is below the typical £2 but not in the true low mintage group. It came out in a busy year for £2 coins, with the Guinea commemorative also dated 2013. Of the two Underground designs it is the one that makes the cleverest use of the coin's two metals.
How to recognize it
This design uses the coin itself as part of the picture. The front of a tube train, modeled on the 1967 stock, fills the cupronickel center as if it were coming out of a tunnel. The nickel-brass outer ring forms the tunnel mouth around it. The inscription 1863 LONDON UNDERGROUND 2013 runs around the top. The edge is unusual too: instead of lettering it carries a linear pattern representing the Tube map. If your Underground £2 has MIND THE GAP on the edge, you have the roundel coin instead. The train's windows and lights are the details that show wear first. Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby designed it.
The other side carries Ian Rank-Broadley's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, used from 1998 to 2015.
2013 London Underground Train £2 by the numbers
In mintage terms the 2013 London Underground Train £2 ranks 17th lowest of 42 circulating £2 coins with a published mintage. The next scarcer is the 1995 United Nations £2 (1.67 million); the next more common is the 2013 Guinea £2 (2.99 million).
For scale, the most common is the 2005 End of World War II (VE Day 60) £2 with 10.2 million, about 6 times as many. The scarcest is the 1989 Claim of Right £2 with 381,400, 4.4 times fewer than this one.
It was released in 2013 alongside 2 other circulating £2 designs: the London Underground Roundel (1.56 million) and the Guinea (2.99 million). 1 of them had a smaller run.
What to check on your 2013 London Underground Train £2
- Read the edge. It should say Linear representation of the Tube map. 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.
At 1,690,000 the train coin is less common than most commemorative £2 coins but nowhere near the scarcest. Circulated examples usually go for face value or a small premium, with crisp coins preferred. The patterned edge makes it a little harder to check than lettered designs, so look for clean, regular lines and a center that sits tight in the ring. Many collectors keep it alongside the roundel coin as a pair. The Royal Mint sold both designs in presentation packs, where the train's front window and headlights stay sharp.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 2 pounds |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2013 |
| Circulation mintage | 1,690,000 |
| Composition | Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring |
| Weight | 12.0 g |
| Diameter | 28.4 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Lettered: Linear representation of the Tube map |
| Designer | Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby |
| Portrait | Rank-Broadley |
Other 2013 £2 coins
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 London Underground Roundel £2 Coin | 1,560,000 | Face value |
| 2013 Guinea £2 Coin | 2,990,000 | Face value |
Frequently asked questions
What train is on the London Underground £2?
The train is based on 1967 stock, the type introduced for the Victoria line. Its front fills the center of the coin so it looks as though it is coming straight at you out of a tunnel formed by the outer ring.
Why is there no writing on the edge of the Underground train £2?
Instead of words, the edge carries a linear pattern representing the Tube map, which makes it unusual among £2 coins. The other 2013 Underground coin, the roundel design, has MIND THE GAP lettered on its edge.
Mintage figures: Two pound coin (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.