2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2 Coin
The 2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2 is a Royal Mint collector issue that was never released into circulation. Value band: small premium. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2022
- Issued as
- Collector packs and sets only
- Value band
- Small premium
- Designer
- Henry Gray
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 2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2 worth?
This design was never released into circulation. The Royal Mint sold it in brilliant uncirculated packs and annual sets, so almost every example is a collector piece. One found in change is still legal tender at 2 pounds; out of its pack it brings a small premium at most, while a coin still sealed in its original packaging is what collectors want.
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 2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2 rare?
- It is scarcer than most £2 coins. It was never issued into circulation, so most examples are in collector packs.
- How many 2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2 coins were made?
- None were made for circulation. The Mint sold this design only in packs and sets.
- Who designed the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2?
- The design is credited to Henry Gray.
- What is the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2 made of?
- Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring. It weighs 12.0 g and measures 28.4 mm.
- Is the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2 still legal tender?
- Yes. Every two-metal £2 coin, commemoratives included, is legal tender in the UK.
Why the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2 was made
Alexander Graham Bell was born in Edinburgh in 1847 into a family that worked on speech and elocution. His mother lost much of her hearing. Bell spent years teaching deaf students after the family moved to North America. In 1876 he was granted a patent for the telephone, an invention that changed how the world communicated. He kept experimenting for the rest of his life and died in 1922. This 2022 coin marks a century since his death. It also opened the Royal Mint's Innovation in Science run of two-pound coins, which continued in 2023 with Edward Jenner and Ada Lovelace.
The Bell £2 never went into circulation. The Royal Mint sold it as a brilliant uncirculated coin and in the 2022 annual sets, so all examples started out with collectors. If you spot one in your change, it came from a pack that someone opened and spent. That doesn't affect its status: it's legal tender with a face value of two pounds and you can spend it if you want to.
How to recognize it
Henry Gray's reverse shows the buttons of a telephone keypad, with PIONEER OF THE TELEPHONE 1847 1922 split across the keys. It's a playful choice, since push button keypads came long after Bell's own instruments, but it reads instantly as "telephone". The edge reads INNOVATION IN SCIENCE BELL, a format shared with the later coins in the run, each ending with a scientist's name. The 2022 Bell coin carries the Jody Clark portrait of Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse. Keypad buttons with lettering on them make this design easy to recognize. Check the dates on the keys; the BELL edge confirms it.
The other side carries Jody Clark's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, introduced in 2015 and the last of her reign.
2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2 by the numbers
No circulation mintage exists for the 2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2 because none were released to banks. The Royal Mint's other collector-only £2 coins dated 2022 were Dame Vera Lynn, FA Cup and 25 Years of the £2.
No commemorative £2 dated 2022 was released for circulation, which is why so many people hunting change for new designs never see this one.
What to check on your 2022 Alexander Graham Bell £2
- Read the edge. It should say INNOVATION IN SCIENCE BELL. 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 no circulation mintage, a spent Bell £2 is uncommon in change. Collectors following the Innovation in Science run usually want all three coins. A sharp coin from a pack or set brings a collector premium; a worn one usually a small premium. Check the lettering on the keypad buttons, which wears quickly. A genuine coin has two clearly different metals locked tightly together and edge lettering that reads INNOVATION IN SCIENCE BELL. A blank edge or a different name means it isn't this coin.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 2 pounds |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2022 |
| Circulation mintage | None (collector issue) |
| Composition | Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring |
| Weight | 12.0 g |
| Diameter | 28.4 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Lettered: INNOVATION IN SCIENCE BELL |
| Designer | Henry Gray |
| Portrait | Clark |
Other 2022 £2 coins
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 Dame Vera Lynn £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2022 FA Cup £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2022 25 Years of the £2 £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
Frequently asked questions
What is the Innovation in Science £2 series?
A run of £2 coins whose edges all read INNOVATION IN SCIENCE followed by a name. It includes Alexander Graham Bell in 2022 with Edward Jenner and Ada Lovelace in 2023. All were sold to collectors, not issued through banks.
How many Alexander Graham Bell £2 coins went into circulation?
None. The Royal Mint sold the coin only in brilliant uncirculated packs and in the 2022 annual sets. Any example found in change came out of one of those and is still legal tender for two pounds.
Mintage figures: Two pound coin (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.