2018 Peter Rabbit 50p
The 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p is a circulating 50p with 1.4 million made. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2018
- Circulation mintage
- 1,400,000
- Value band
- Face value
- Designer
- Emma Noble
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 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p worth?
1.4 million were made, so the 2018 Peter Rabbit 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 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p rare?
- No. 1.4 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p coins were made?
- 1,400,000 were struck for circulation.
- Who designed the 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p?
- The design is credited to Emma Noble.
- What is the 2018 Peter Rabbit 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 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p still legal tender?
- Yes. Every 27.3 mm 50p, including commemoratives, is legal tender in the UK.
Why the 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p was made
By 2018 Peter Rabbit was making his third appearance on a circulating 50p. The Royal Mint had included him in the first Beatrix Potter set in 2016 and again in 2017. He returned for the 2018 set alongside Flopsy Bunny, Mrs. Tittlemouse and The Tailor of Gloucester. The year was a big one for the character, with a Peter Rabbit feature film reaching cinemas, so the coin arrived while he was already in the public eye.
What makes this coin different from the earlier Peter Rabbits is the number made. The 2016 and 2017 coins were struck in very large quantities, but the 2018 Peter Rabbit had a circulation mintage of just 1.4 million, tied with Flopsy Bunny for the lowest of that year's Potter coins. Many people who already had a Peter Rabbit 50p from change did not realize there was a scarcer version until they checked the date. If you have a Peter Rabbit coin in a jar or a collection, it is worth looking again. Of the three Peter Rabbit designs that went into change from 2016 to 2018, this is the hardest to find.
How to recognize it
Emma Noble's 2018 design shows Peter Rabbit in his jacket eating radishes, with his name. The picture comes from Potter's own illustrations of Peter helping himself in Mr. McGregor's garden. To separate it from the other Peter Rabbit coins, check the date for 2018 and look for the eating pose. The 2017 coin has the words The Tale of Peter Rabbit instead. In the books Peter's jacket is blue, but the circulating coin is plain cupronickel, so you will see only the shape of the jacket. Jody Clark's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II is on the obverse, on a 27.3 mm seven-sided coin.
The other side carries Jody Clark's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, introduced in 2015 and the last of her reign.
2018 Peter Rabbit 50p by the numbers
Measured by how many were made, the 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p ranks 8th lowest of 76 circulating 50p coins with a published mintage. The next scarcer is the 2018 Flopsy Bunny 50p (1.4 million); the next more common is the 2011 Olympic Tennis 50p (1.45 million).
For scale, the most common is the 1973 EEC Hands 50p with 89.8 million, about 64 times as many. The scarcest is the 1992 Single Market 50p with 109,000, 13 times fewer than this one.
2018 brought 6 other circulating 50p designs: the Flopsy Bunny (1.4 million), the Mrs Tittlemouse (1.7 million), the The Tailor of Gloucester (3.9 million), the Paddington at the Station (5 million), the Paddington at the Palace (5.9 million) and the Representation of the People Act (9 million). The 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p was the scarcest of the year.
Within the circulating Beatrix Potter 50p coins, it ranks 2nd scarcest, behind the Flopsy Bunny.
What to check on your 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p
- Confirm the design. The reverse should match the Peter Rabbit described above and carry the date 2018; 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.
This is the Peter Rabbit 50p people hope to find. At 1.4 million it has a much lower circulation mintage than the 2016 or 2017 versions. Peter's popularity keeps demand high too. Circulated coins bring a small premium over the more common Peter Rabbits. Clean examples do better still. Check Peter's ears and paws for rubbing. The Royal Mint also sold the design in brilliant uncirculated packs, so bright coins are not always from change. Pack coins have flawless, reflective fields, while circulated ones show wear and contact marks.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 50 pence |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2018 |
| Circulation mintage | 1,400,000 |
| Composition | Cupronickel (75% copper, 25% nickel) |
| Weight | 8.0 g |
| Diameter | 27.3 mm |
| Shape | Seven-sided (equilateral curve heptagon) |
| Edge | Plain |
| Designer | Emma Noble |
| Portrait | Clark |
Other 2018 50p coins
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 Representation of the People Act 50p | 9,000,000 | Face value |
| 2018 Paddington at the Palace 50p | 5,901,000 | Face value |
| 2018 Paddington at the Station 50p | 5,001,000 | Face value |
| 2018 Tailor of Gloucester 50p | 3,900,000 | Face value |
| 2018 Mrs Tittlemouse 50p | 1,700,000 | Face value |
| 2018 Flopsy Bunny 50p | 1,400,000 | Face value |
| 2018 Snowman 50p | Collector issue | Small premium |
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2018 Peter Rabbit 50p rare?
It is the scarcest of the Peter Rabbit 50ps issued into change from 2016 to 2018, with 1.4 million struck for circulation. That is far fewer than the 2017 version, which had 19.9 million, so it carries a small premium.
How can I tell if my Peter Rabbit 50p is the 2018 one?
Check the date first. The 2018 coin shows Peter eating, with just his name. The 2017 coin includes the words The Tale of Peter Rabbit. The 2016 coin is a different design again, so the date is the surest guide.
Mintage figures: Fifty pence (British coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.