Brits have been cautioned not to be "fooled" by a particular supposedly valuable coin. According to an expert, people are mistakenly advertising a 50 pence piece for up to £300,000 online.
Rare coins can be worth substantial amounts. Depending on a coin's age or scarcity, it could fetch hundreds or even thousands of pounds.
However, you shouldn't trust everything you see online. In footage shared on social media platform TikTok, an expert known as the Coin Collecting Wizard revealed details of a coin that can be incorrectly valued.
The expert stated: "£300,000 for an Elizabeth 50 pence with a necklace! Have you heard about this?
"OMG have you seen this? A Queen Elizabeth 50p with a necklace!"
He discussed a 50p coin from 1997. On its obverse side (head side), Queen Elizabeth II's portrait features her wearing a necklace.
However, there is nothing unusual about this coin, he explained. The expert added: "People are going crazy thinking it's rare and worth loads of money, but let me tell you the truth.
"To put this into perspective for you, the 1997 50p coin is one of the most common coins you can find in your change, with a mintage of 456 million. Yes, you heard that right.
"This is just a regular UK 50p coin. The necklace people are talking about, that's actually part of the design."
He cautioned that some individuals are attempting to sell the coin for "crazy prices". He explained: "People are trying to sell these online for crazy prices and I get messages daily from people asking about this necklace coin. But don't be fooled, it's just a normal 50p worth, well, 50p."
At the time of writing, examples of this coin were being advertised on eBay with asking prices of £5,086.70, £3,270.70, £2,556.70, and £1,026.70. Rather than the 1997 50p piece, the specialist advised collectors to look out for the Kew Gardens coin instead.
This 2009 coin displays the famous Chinese pagoda from the gardens on its reverse side, with Queen Elizabeth II featured on the obverse.
According to The Royal Mint's website, collectors "go crazy" for the Kew Gardens 50p. The site states: "If you were to ask collectors which coin got them started, the chances are it was the 50p."
The Coin Collecting Wizard had previously valued this particular coin at approximately £150. He went on to say: "If you really want valuable coins, look for actual rare ones like the Kew Gardens 50p or error coins."
He concluded: "And of course, the best way is to follow me for more coin collecting tips."
