The Royal Mint launches The Mary Anning Collection, releasing Jurassic 50p coins
THE Royal Mint has released three new Jurassic 50p coins in celebration of Mary Anning, one of Britain’s greatest fossil hunters.
Available to buy directly from the coin maker, the price for an uncirculated version starts at £10, but goes up to a huge £1,100 for the gold Proof series.
is a collaboration between The Royal Mint and the Natural History Museum, celebrating dinousaurs discovered here in the UK.
Fossil hunter and pioneering palaeontologist Mary Anning is being honoured having three of her discoveries featured on the coins; the temnodontosaurus, plesiosaurus and dimorphodon.
- The Mary Anning Collection -
series is set to be popular with collectors as the Mint has only released 250 of them - but they're priced at a staggering £1,100 each.
The cheapest in the collection is , setting you back just £10 per coin.
How to safely store valuable coins
HERE are some tricks to keep your valuable coins safe from toning:
- Store your coins in individual containers
- Put it in a clear, air tight holder that lets you see the coin from both sides
- Avoid putting them in clear plastic sandwich bags because they can still rub against each other an may cause scratches or marks
- Store your collection in a folder or album, although tarnishing may occur quicker than in an airtight container
- Keep them out of a damp environment. You can use silica gel to help prevent damp
- Wear clean, white gloves when handling the coins
- Steer clear of using PVC materials as it traps moisture and releases acidic gases which can damage the collection.
There is a limit of one gold proof, three silver proof and 10 brilliant uncirculated colour series per household.
You'll need to factor in delivery costs too. It costs £3 for orders under £20 and £5 for orders between £20.01 and £250.
More expensive orders will be charged £9 for the service.
Clare Maclennan, Divisional Director of Commemorative Coin at The Royal Mint explained the coins are a scientifically accurate reconstruction of the dinosaurs.
She added: "We have combined augmented reality technology with the coins to bring the animals to life through animation and allow people to explore the details of the prehistoric marine reptiles from the comfort of their home."
is the second coin collection in The Royal Mint’s "Tales of the Earth" series.
Despite her extraordinary discoveries, Anning's achievements were often overlooked by a scientific world dominated by men.
She was born in Lyme Regis, Dorset, in 1799 and spent her life in the small seaside town on England's south coast.
She developed an interest in fossils and discovered "snake stones" (ammonites), "devil fingers" (belemites) and "verteberries" (vertebrae). Anning died at the age of 47.
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The Royal Mint has also recently launched new 50p coins worth up to £2,175 to celebrate decimal day.
Here are the 12 rarest and most valuable coins of 2020 and they could be worth up to £230.
We recently revealed five new 2021 coins revealed including one for the Queen’s 95th birthday.
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