Rare silver 2p coin sells for £485 on eBay
Two pence pieces are normally a copper colour but instead this particular coin was accidentally minted on the same base as a 10p coin
All recommendations within this article are informed by expert editorial opinion. If you click on a link in this story we may earn affiliate revenue.
A RARE silver 2p coin has sold on eBay for £485 - thousands of times more than face value.
Normally, 2 pence is supposed to be minted on a copper coloured base but instead it's been struck onto a silver coloured one making it "extremely rare".
The Royal Mint manufactures between three and four million coins a day so it's understandable that sometimes mistakes happen.
The penny is what's known as a mule or "error coin", making them super rare which makes is super valuable to collectors as they're nearly one of a kind.
The 2p is dated 1989 and made from cupro-nickel, which is the same as a 10p coin.
It's not the first time we've seen one of these coins - one dated in 2016 sold for £41 on eBay.
The rarest and most valuable error coins in circulation
COINS with rare designs are known to fetch thousands of pounds at auction but ones that have been minted with a mistake on them are also selling for a lot of money. These are the most valuable:
London 2012 Olympics Aquatics 50p first design, £1,500
Originally, the aquatics coin shows water passing directly over the swimmer’s face, but it was modified to include less water so you can see the swimmer more clearly. But experts have valued this one to be worth between £1,000 and £1,500.
1983 New Pence 2p coin, £1,250
The secret lies in the date. All 2p coins minted between February 1971 and 1982 should say 'new pence' on the front, while those released after this date say 'two pence'. But in 1983, a glitch meant a batch of 2p coins were printed with the old wording - new pence - on them, rather than two pence, making them valuable to collectors.
Silver 2p (1971 to 1992), £1,000
These coins were accidentally inted on the wrong base. James Weller from Kent found one in his change at home. He hasn't sold it yet, but if it sells for anything like other silver 2p coins, then it could be worth more than £1,000.
All zinc £2 coin, £800
The rare Standing on the Shoulders of Giants £2 coin has only been stamped on nickel brass, rather than on two types of metal - nickel brass and copper zinc. Approximately 10,270,000 of these types of coins were issued for circulation in 2007.
Bronze 20p, £750
One of the rarest coins ever, the bronze 20p coin is dated 1987. It said it was the result of an extremely rare minting error, with a blank 1p somehow finding its way into the presses and ending up with a 20p struck onto it.
A similar 2p coin sold for £1,350 so this one could be worth as much.
Silver 2p (1992 to 2018), £600
This rare misprint happened at the Royal Mint back in 2016 and you could easily mistake it for a 10p coin.
£1 with two dates, up to £500
These rare £1 coins have the latest design and are printed with the year 2016 printed on the face. But if you look carefully - you'll probably need a magnifying glass - 2017 is printed in micro-lettering on the reverse side. A veteran coin expert has labelled the rare find as one which could fetch up to a cool £3,000 - but only if it's verified by the Royal Mint.
But in 2016, a silver 2p coin dropped into a charity collection tin sold on eBay for a whopping £1,350.
The seller didn't specify any specific details about this , so we don't know if it's been circulated or not.
It does look to be in a decent condition though which will inevitably push up the price.
At first, the coin was listed for £1 - 50 times face value - but after 19 bids, it eventually sold for almost £500.
It's not the only error coin accidentally minted on a silver base by accident.
One pub punter was accidentally handed an "extremely valuable" silver £1 coin in his change for a pint and was offered £100 for his find.
Rare coins and valuable notes
Coins that have been deliberately minted can also be rare and super valuable.
One of the most rare coins is the Kew Gardens 50p coins which worth around £90 to a collector.
Have you got a 50p coin that might be worth a small fortune? We've put together a roundup of the rarest and most valuable 50p coins so that you can check your change.
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online Money team? Email us at [email protected]