2003 Suffragettes 50p
The 2003 Suffragettes 50p is a circulating 50p with 3.12 million made. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2003
- Circulation mintage
- 3,124,030
- Value band
- Face value
- Designer
- Mary Milner Dickens
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 2003 Suffragettes 50p worth?
3.12 million were made, so the 2003 Suffragettes 50p 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 no scratches or contact marks
- Original Royal Mint pack or presentation folder
- A genuine mint error, 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 2003 Suffragettes 50p rare?
- No. 3.12 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 2003 Suffragettes 50p coins were made?
- 3,124,030 were struck for circulation.
- Who designed the 2003 Suffragettes 50p?
- The design is credited to Mary Milner Dickens.
- What is the 2003 Suffragettes 50p made of?
- Cupronickel (75% copper, 25% nickel). It weighs 8.0 g and measures 27.3 mm, with a seven-sided (equilateral curve heptagon) shape.
- Is the 2003 Suffragettes 50p still legal tender?
- Yes. Every 27.3 mm 50p, including commemoratives, is legal tender in the UK.
Why the 2003 Suffragettes 50p was made
In October 1903 Emmeline Pankhurst founded the Women's Social and Political Union in Manchester with a small group of women that included her daughter Christabel. Its members, soon nicknamed suffragettes, campaigned for women's right to vote with tactics that grew more militant over the following decade, from heckling politicians to window smashing and chaining themselves to railings. Many were imprisoned, including Emmeline Pankhurst herself, while some went on hunger strike in jail. Women over 30 who met a property qualification won the vote in 1918 and voting rights were made equal with men's in 1928.
The Royal Mint marked the centenary of the union with a 50p in 2003. Mary Milner Dickens, who had already designed the 1992 Single Market and 2000 Public Libraries coins, produced the design. Just over 3.1 million were struck for circulation, a relatively low figure for the time. The coin has since become one of the more sought after designs among people who collect 50ps from their change. Its subject also gives it wide appeal beyond coin collectors, especially among those interested in women's history.
How to recognize it
A suffragette stands chained to railings, holding a banner with the letters WSPU. To the right is a ballot paper marked with a cross beside the words GIVE WOMEN THE VOTE. The value 50 PENCE sits on the left, while the anniversary dates 1903 and 2003 appear below and at the far right. The figure, the chain and the ballot paper together make it easy to identify. It is one of the busiest small-size 50p designs, with figure, railings, banner and ballot paper all packed in. Ian Rank-Broadley's effigy of the Queen is on the obverse; size is the modern 27.3 mm and the edge is plain. The designer is Mary Milner Dickens.
The other side carries Ian Rank-Broadley's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, used from 1998 to 2015.
2003 Suffragettes 50p by the numbers
In mintage terms the 2003 Suffragettes 50p ranks 36th lowest of 76 circulating 50p coins with a published mintage. The next scarcer is the 2011 Olympic Athletics 50p (2.22 million); the next more common is the 2011 Olympic Archery 50p (3.35 million).
For scale, the most common is the 1973 EEC Hands 50p with 89.8 million, about 29 times as many. The scarcest is the 1992 Single Market 50p with 109,000, 29 times fewer than this one.
It was the only circulating commemorative 50p dated 2003. The regular Britannia reverse accounted for another 23.6 million that year.
What to check on your 2003 Suffragettes 50p
- Confirm the design. The reverse should match the Suffragettes described above and carry the date 2003; similar designs from other years are a common mix-up.
- Weigh it if you can: a genuine 27.3 mm 50p weighs 8.0 g. Copies are often light, slightly soft in detail or the wrong color.
- Ignore painted or colored versions sold online as special editions. Color added after the coin left the Mint does not make it a Royal Mint issue and does not add collector value.
- Look at the surfaces under a bright light. Coins straight from a pack have unbroken luster; change-worn coins show scuffs on the high points of the portrait and design.
At about 3.1 million, the Suffragettes coin has the lowest circulation figure of any small-size commemorative 50p issued before 2009, a fact collectors notice. Circulated coins still trade close to face value, but clean examples attract steady interest and a sharp one can earn a small premium. Check the links of the chain and the lettering on the ballot paper, which wear first. A coin straight from new has smooth, bright fields, while one from change usually shows nicks on the railings and a dulled banner.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 50 pence |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2003 |
| Circulation mintage | 3,124,030 |
| Composition | Cupronickel (75% copper, 25% nickel) |
| Weight | 8.0 g |
| Diameter | 27.3 mm |
| Shape | Seven-sided (equilateral curve heptagon) |
| Edge | Plain |
| Designer | Mary Milner Dickens |
| Portrait | Rank-Broadley |
Frequently asked questions
How many Suffragette 50p coins were minted?
The Royal Mint struck 3,124,030 for circulation in 2003. That makes it one of the lower mintage commemorative 50ps of its era, though it is still about fifteen times more plentiful than the Kew Gardens coin of 2009.
What does WSPU stand for on the 50p?
WSPU is the Women's Social and Political Union, the campaign group founded by Emmeline Pankhurst in Manchester in 1903. Its members were the suffragettes and the letters appear on the banner held by the chained figure on the reverse.
Mintage figures: Fifty pence (British coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.