Most old British coins are worth a little, a few are worth their silver, and a very small number are worth a great deal. Bronze pennies, halfpennies and farthings from Victoria to Elizabeth II were struck by the hundreds of millions and usually sell for approximately $0.25-3 each. Silver is where the money starts: sixpences, shillings, florins, half crowns and crowns dated 1919 or earlier are sterling (92.5 percent silver), and those dated 1920 to 1946 are 50 percent silver, so they are worth their metal and sometimes more. Coins from 1947 onward are cupronickel and worth little. Gold sovereigns are in a class of their own, holding about $940 of gold each with gold at $4,000 per troy ounce. The famous rarities, the 1933 penny and the 1952 half crown, were never in circulation and are almost certainly not in a family tin.
Quick answer
- Bronze pennies, halfpennies and farthings are usually worth $0.25-3, Victorian ones included.
- Silver coins dated 1946 or earlier are worth their silver: sterling to 1919, 50 percent 1920-1946.
- Gold sovereigns are worth their gold, about $940-1,000 each at $4,000 gold.
How to check yours, step by step
A scale reading to 0.1 gram, a 5x loupe and decent daylight cover everything below.
- Identify the denomination from the reverse. Most pre-decimal coins carry the denomination in words on the reverse: FARTHING, HALF PENNY, ONE PENNY, THREEPENCE, SIXPENCE, ONE SHILLING, ONE FLORIN TWO SHILLINGS, HALF CROWN. Crowns from the 20th century often show only the design. The size table below helps when wear has taken the words.
- Read the date. On pennies, halfpennies and farthings the date is on the reverse, under Britannia, the ship or the wren. On silver coins it is on the reverse as well, usually split by the design or along the bottom edge. The Victorian Gothic florin of 1851-1887 is the odd one out, with the date in Roman numerals in the obverse legend.
- Read the monarch on the obverse. The Latin legend names the ruler: VICTORIA, EDWARDVS VII, GEORGIVS V, GEORGIVS VI, ELIZABETH II. "D G" means by the grace of God, "F D" means Defender of the Faith, and "IND IMP" (Emperor of India) appears until 1948. Victoria, George V and George VI face left; Edward VII and Elizabeth II face right.
- Sort silver by date. A sixpence, shilling, florin, half crown or crown dated 1919 or earlier is sterling. Dated 1920 to 1946, it is 50 percent silver. Dated 1947 or later, it is cupronickel. Threepences are the exception: silver to 1944 (a few in 1945), with a separate 12-sided brass threepence from 1937.
- Look at the color and the edges. Worn 50 percent silver often looks grey or slightly yellowish rather than bright. Cupronickel is a flat steel grey. If the date is unreadable, weigh the coin and compare it with the table.
- Check any yellow coin with a scale. A gold sovereign weighs 7.99 grams and is 22 mm across. A half sovereign weighs 3.99 grams and is 19.3 mm. Brass threepences, tokens and gilt medals are the usual look-alikes.
- Judge wear last. On Victorian and Edwardian coins, look at the hair, the crown and the dress detail. On the reverse, look at Britannia's shield, the ship's rigging or the lion. Note any cleaning, holes or jewelry damage.
Denominations and silver content
Before 15 February 1971, Britain counted in pounds, shillings and pence: 12 pence to the shilling and 20 shillings to the pound, so 240 pence to the pound. The table shows the silver content of each coin and the melt value with silver assumed at $40 per troy ounce. To recalculate, multiply the pure silver figure by the spot price.
| Coin | Value | Size | Sterling silver, to 1919 | 50% silver, 1920-1946 | Melt at $40, sterling / 50% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Farthing | 1/4 penny | 20 mm | Bronze | Bronze | Under $0.10 |
| Halfpenny | 1/2 penny | 25.5 mm | Bronze | Bronze | Under $0.10 |
| Penny | 1 penny | 31 mm | Bronze | Bronze | Under $0.15 |
| Threepence | 3 pence | 16 mm | 0.042 oz | 0.023 oz | About $1.70 / $0.90 |
| Sixpence | 6 pence | 19 mm | 0.084 oz | 0.045 oz | About $3.40 / $1.80 |
| Shilling | 12 pence | 23.5 mm | 0.168 oz | 0.091 oz | About $6.70 / $3.60 |
| Florin | 2 shillings | 28.5 mm | 0.336 oz | 0.182 oz | About $13.50 / $7.30 |
| Half crown | 2 shillings 6 pence | 32 mm | 0.420 oz | 0.227 oz | About $16.80 / $9.10 |
| Crown | 5 shillings | 38.5 mm | 0.841 oz | 0.455 oz | About $33.60 / $18.20 |
Worn silver coins weigh a little less than new ones, so their melt value runs slightly below these figures. At $30 silver, multiply the melt values by 0.75. At $50 silver, multiply them by 1.25.
Maundy money is the exception to the 1947 rule. These small coins, given by the monarch each Easter, followed the 50 percent standard from 1921 to 1946 but went back to sterling in 1947 and still are.
What old British coins are worth
These are approximate values for coins in average circulated condition unless stated. Uncirculated coins with original color or luster sell for more, sometimes many times more.
| Coin | Typical find | Approximate value |
|---|---|---|
| Victorian bun head penny, 1860-1894 | Very common, worn | $0.50-3 |
| Victorian old head penny, 1895-1901 | Common | $0.50-3 |
| Pennies 1902-1967 | Common | $0.10-1 |
| Farthings and halfpennies, 1900-1967 | Common | $0.10-1 |
| Brass threepence, most dates | Common | $0.25-2 |
| Brass threepence 1946 or 1949 | Scarce dates | $20-100 |
| Sterling sixpence or shilling, to 1919 | Common | Silver value, $3-8 |
| Sterling florin or half crown, to 1919 | Common | Silver value plus a little, $14-25 |
| 50% silver coins, 1920-1946 | Common | Silver value, $2-10 |
| Victorian crown, 1887-1900 | Fairly common | $40-90 |
| George V wreath crown, 1927-1936 | Low mintages | $150-600, more for 1934 |
| 1935 Jubilee crown | Common | $15-30 |
| 1951, 1953, 1960, 1965 crowns | Cupronickel souvenirs | $2-10 |
| 1797 cartwheel penny or twopence | Large, heavy copper | $20-150 |
| Gold half sovereign | Common dates | About $480-520 |
| Gold sovereign | Common dates | About $950-1,050 |
Why most Victorian pennies are a dollar or two
Victorian bronze pennies feel important: they are large, they are over 120 years old and they carry the portrait of a queen who ruled for 63 years. But the Royal Mint and its contractors struck hundreds of millions of them, and they stayed in circulation until 1971. By then most were worn almost smooth, which is the condition most families inherited them in. Common dates in that state sell for well under $5, often in bulk. A few varieties and dates, such as the 1869, the 1871 and the 1882 struck without the H mint mark of the Heaton mint, are scarce enough to bring real money, and uncirculated coins with red color sell for much more. For a worn penny with a common date, a dollar or two is the honest figure.
The 1933 penny
Britain did not need new pennies in 1933, so none were made for circulation. A very small number, usually given as seven, were struck to be placed under the foundation stones of new buildings and for the Royal collection. One of the foundation stone pieces was stolen, and a few others have been sold privately over the years. Each one is worth six figures. Any 1933 penny found in a jar or an estate is almost certainly an altered 1935 or a fake, and the date digits of an altered coin usually look a little uneven under a loupe.
The 1952 half crown
George VI died in February 1952, and no half crowns dated 1952 were struck for circulation. One example is known, believed to be a pattern, and it is a museum-level rarity. A 1952 half crown in an estate is either a fake or a misread 1932 or 1951 coin. Common 1950s half crowns are cupronickel and worth about $1-3.
Gold sovereigns
The sovereign is 22 carat gold, 91.67 percent, and contains 0.2354 troy ounces of pure gold. At $4,000 gold that is about $942 of metal, and common dates sell at a few percent above that. The half sovereign contains 0.1177 oz, about $471. Sovereigns were struck in London and in branch mints in Australia, Canada, India and South Africa, and the branch mint mark is a small letter on the ground line above the date on the St George reverse: M for Melbourne, S for Sydney, P for Perth, C for Ottawa, I for Bombay, SA for Pretoria.
Most sovereigns, including Victorian, Edwardian and George V coins and the large modern bullion issues, sell for gold value. Some early dates, some branch mint coins and the 1917 London sovereign are scarce and sell for well over gold. Sovereigns are also heavily counterfeited, so weigh any gold coin first. The how to tell if gold is real guide covers the general tests, and the Krugerrand guide explains how premiums over gold work for modern gold coins.
Other dates worth looking for
A handful of 20th century dates and types carry clear premiums: the 1905 half crown, the 1934 wreath crown, the 1946 and 1949 brass threepences, and the 1952 sixpence in high grade. Most are worth tens to low hundreds of dollars in average condition, the 1934 crown more, with only 932 struck. The 1953 penny was only issued in sets and is worth a few dollars. Pre-Victorian silver and copper, from George III and earlier, is collected on its own terms and can be worth tens to hundreds of dollars even when worn.
Common mistakes
- Thinking age alone means value. A worn 1890 penny is over 130 years old and still common. Date, condition and metal set the price.
- Treating 1947 and later silver-colored coins as silver. They are cupronickel. Only coins dated 1946 and earlier contain silver, apart from Maundy money.
- Believing a 1933 penny or a 1952 half crown has turned up. Neither circulated. Check the date digits for tooling before getting hopeful.
- Cleaning pennies. Bright, scrubbed copper looks pink and unnatural, and it removes most of what a collector would pay for an uncirculated coin.
- Missing the sovereign in the tin. A sovereign is smaller than a penny and easy to overlook. Check every yellow coin with a scale.
- Valuing the 1951 Festival of Britain crown as rare. It came in a box, was sold in millions and is cupronickel. Expect a few dollars.
What to photograph
Daylight, no flash, and the phone held flat above the coin give the clearest pictures. Group common coins together; photograph silver and gold one at a time.
- The obverse straight on, with the monarch's name and portrait readable.
- The reverse straight on, with the date and denomination sharp.
- A close-up of the date digits on any coin with a date that matters, such as 1933, 1952 or 1905.
- The area below the date on Victorian pennies, where a small H appears on Heaton mint coins.
- The ground line above the date on a sovereign, to show any branch mint mark.
- The coin on a scale for any gold or suspected silver piece.
When to get it looked at in person
Most British coins are not worth the cost of grading. A few are.
- A local coin dealer can sort a tin in minutes, pick out silver by date and quote a price tied to the silver spot. Sovereigns are bought by most dealers at close to gold value.
- PCGS or NGC charge tens of dollars per coin and up, plus shipping and fees. Grading is worth it for scarce sovereigns, uncirculated Victorian or Edwardian silver, wreath crowns and key dates like the 1905 half crown.
- A UK auction house or specialist dealer suits early milled coins, rare varieties and full collections, since the strongest market for British coins is in Britain.
The foreign coins guide covers other countries in a mixed lot, and the inherited coins guide gives the order to sort an estate.