2019 Snowman 50p
The 2019 Snowman 50p 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
- 2019
- Issued as
- Collector packs and sets only
- Value band
- Small premium
- Designer
- Snowman Enterprises
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 2019 Snowman 50p 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 50 pence; 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 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 2019 Snowman 50p rare?
- It is scarcer than most 50p coins. It was never issued into circulation, so most examples are in collector packs.
- How many 2019 Snowman 50p coins were made?
- None were made for circulation. The Mint sold this design only in packs and sets.
- Who designed the 2019 Snowman 50p?
- The design is credited to Snowman Enterprises.
- What is the 2019 Snowman 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 2019 Snowman 50p still legal tender?
- Yes. Every 27.3 mm 50p, including commemoratives, is legal tender in the UK.
Why the 2019 Snowman 50p was made
After the success of the 2018 coin, the Royal Mint returned to Raymond Briggs's story for Christmas 2019. The Snowman had by then been a seasonal favorite for four decades, first as a wordless picture book in 1978 and then as the 1982 animated film that still runs on British television every December. The annual Snowman 50p became something many families bought as a Christmas gift, often as a gift for children.
The 2019 coin followed the same route to market as the first: sold as a brilliant uncirculated coin in a festive pack and kept out of the banking system altogether. If one turns up among your coins, the explanation is that someone took it out of its pack and used it to pay for something. It is legal tender at 50p, but these coins only leak into change one at a time, so most people will never be handed one. No pack mintage is given for this year, so avoid comparing it directly with the 170,705 figure published for the 2018 coin.
How to recognize it
This reverse shows the Snowman and James standing together, with James in front and a hilly winter landscape behind them. The design is credited to Snowman Enterprises. The obverse has Jody Clark's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II with the 2019 date. If you have a Snowman 50p and are not sure of the year, the scene settles it: the pair standing side by side in the snow points to 2019, a flight through the sky means 2018, an embrace means 2020 and James drawing the mouth means 2021. It is the usual cupronickel 50p, seven-sided with a plain edge, so in your hand it feels like any other.
The other side carries Jody Clark's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, introduced in 2015 and the last of her reign.
2019 Snowman 50p by the numbers
No circulation mintage exists for the 2019 Snowman 50p because none were released to banks. The Royal Mint's other collector-only 50p coins dated 2019 were The Gruffalo, Stephen Hawking, Peter Rabbit, 50 Years of the 50p: British Culture Set, 50 Years of the 50p: British Military Set, The Gruffalo and Mouse and Wallace and Gromit.
For comparison, the 50p coins that did reach change in 2019 were the Paddington at the Tower (9 million), the Paddington at St Paul's (9 million) and the Sherlock Holmes (8.6 million).
What to check on your 2019 Snowman 50p
- Confirm the design. The reverse should match the The Snowman described above and carry the date 2019; 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.
Snowman 50ps are popular with collectors who want the full run from 2018 to 2021, so the 2019 coin has steady demand. With no circulation mintage, every example started as a pack coin. Left in its festive pack, it carries a collector premium. A loose coin from change is a different matter: rub marks on the figures and scratches across the snowy field usually leave it around face value or a small premium. Under a light, a pack coin has clean, unbroken luster, while a spent coin shows a dull, scuffed surface and small dents along the rim.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 50 pence |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2019 |
| Circulation mintage | None (collector issue) |
| Composition | Cupronickel (75% copper, 25% nickel) |
| Weight | 8.0 g |
| Diameter | 27.3 mm |
| Shape | Seven-sided (equilateral curve heptagon) |
| Edge | Plain |
| Designer | Snowman Enterprises |
| Portrait | Clark |
Other 2019 50p coins
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 Paddington at the Tower 50p | 9,001,000 | Face value |
| 2019 Paddington at St Paul's 50p | 9,001,000 | Face value |
| 2019 Sherlock Holmes 50p | 8,602,000 | Face value |
| 2019 Gruffalo 50p | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2019 Stephen Hawking 50p | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2019 Peter Rabbit 50p | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2019 50 Years of the 50p: British Culture Set 50p | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2019 50 Years of the 50p: British Military Set 50p | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2019 Gruffalo and Mouse 50p | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2019 Wallace and Gromit 50p | Collector issue | Small premium |
Frequently asked questions
How do I tell the 2019 Snowman 50p from the other years?
Look at the scene. The 2019 coin shows the Snowman and James standing together in the snow, with James in front. The 2018 coin shows them flying, 2020 an embrace and 2021 James drawing the mouth.
Was the 2019 Snowman 50p put into circulation?
No. It was sold only in brilliant uncirculated packs. Any you find in change were opened and spent by buyers, so it is legal tender but rarely encountered loose in a purse or till.
Mintage figures: Fifty pence (British coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.