2021 Royal Shield 50p Coin
The 2021 Royal Shield 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
- 2021
- Issued as
- Collector packs and sets only
- Value band
- Small premium
- Composition
- Cupronickel (75% copper, 25% nickel)
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 2021 Royal Shield 50p worth?
No 2021 50p coin was issued for circulation: the Royal Mint struck that date only for its annual collector sets. A set coin that was spent can turn up in change, which is why 2021 is a date collectors look for. Expect a small premium, more for coins still in the original set.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with no scratches
- A sets-only date or a low circulation year
- A genuine mint error
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 2021 Royal Shield 50p rare?
- It is scarcer than most 50p coins. It was never issued into circulation, so most examples are in collector packs.
- How many 2021 50p coins were made?
- None were made for circulation. The Mint sold this design only in packs and sets.
- What is the 2021 Royal Shield 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 2021 Royal Shield 50p still legal tender?
- Yes. Every 27.3 mm 50p is legal tender in the UK.
The 2021 50p coin in context
No regular Royal Shield 50ps were struck for circulation in 2021, the fiftieth anniversary of Decimal Day. Banks were still well supplied after the large 2019 and 2020 runs. The 2021 regular coin exists only in collector sets, with Jody Clark's portrait and Matthew Dent's shield section. A loose one draws a small premium as a sets-only date.
How to recognize it
The other side carries Jody Clark's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, introduced in 2015 and the last of her reign.
The 2021 Royal Shield 50p is seven-sided (equilateral curve heptagon), 27.3 mm across and cupronickel (75% copper, 25% nickel).
2021 Royal Shield 50p by the numbers
No 2021 50p coins were struck for circulation, so none were paid out by banks. For comparison, nearby circulation dates were 2019 Royal Shield 50p (122 million), 2020 Royal Shield 50p (46.5 million), 2022 Royal Shield 50p (9.5 million) and 2023 Atlantic Salmon 50p (200,000).
What to check on your 2021 Royal Shield 50p
- Confirm the date. 2021 50p coins came only from collector sets, so a genuine one is often in very good condition.
- Check the size: this date is the 27.3 mm coin introduced in 1997, which weighs 8.0 g, with seven curved sides.
- Look at the surfaces under a light. Coins from sets have unbroken luster and color; change-worn coins are dull and scuffed.
- Never clean it. Rubbing or dipping strips the original color and leaves fine scratches.
Royal Shield 50p (2008 to 2022)
Britannia's last batch of 50ps was dated 2008. Later that year Matthew Dent's Royal Shield took over, the winning entry in an open Royal Mint competition to redesign every coin from 1p to the pound. Each coin from 1p to 50p carries one section of the shield from the Royal Arms, so placing the six together rebuilds the full shield, while the pound coin shows it whole. The 50p keeps the 27.3 mm, 8 g cupronickel blank of 1997. It reads FIFTY PENCE in words, with no numeral.
Two portraits appear in this era. Ian Rank-Broadley's runs until 2015, when Jody Clark's portrait, the fifth of the reign, took over, so 2015 exists with both. Output swung wildly. Commemorative 50ps took over the circulation role in many years, from Kew Gardens and the 2011 Olympic sports designs to Beatrix Potter's characters, which left no Royal Shield 50ps made for change in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2016, 2018 or 2021. Those dates come only from collector sets.
The years that were issued vary from just 1,800,000 in 2017 to 122,000,000 in 2019. Card payments grew quickly through these years and banks returned plenty of used coins, so new orders often stayed small. Every Royal Shield 50p is legal tender. When sorting, check the date first and then the portrait: a sets-only date in your change came from a broken set, while a 2017 or 2022 is worth putting aside. Most others are face value coins.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 50 pence |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2021 |
| 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 |
| Portrait | Clark |
Mintage figures: Fifty pence (British coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.