Your quick guide to… THE DATELESS 20p

The 20p piece was introduced into general circulation in 1982. Unlike the more recent £2, 50p and 10p coins, the 20p has not featured any commemorative designs, but there are still varieties to look out for, most notable the ‘dateless 20p’.

The redesign of the UK’s 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p and 50p coins in 2008 led to the most well known 20p rarity. In June 2009 a 20p coin was discovered with no date on either side. This was a production error meaning that the wrong combination of obverse and reverse designs had been used. This type of coin error is know as a ‘Mule’.

The problem occurred thanks to the redesign of UK coins in 2008. Matthew Dent’s design shows a Royal Coat of Arms across the 1p,

2p, 5p, 10p, 20p and 50p coins, almost like a jigsaw puzzle (have a look at your coins and put the shield together!) To accommodate the new design, the date was moved to the obverse.

Somewhere in the production process a batch of the coins were produced using the old obverse design and the new reverse design… the result? The dateless 20p!

A reported 50,000 to 200,000 examples of the rare dateless 20p entered circulation before the error was noticed, and The Royal Mint confirmed that the coins could still be used as legal tender, but anyone in the know will have kept the coins for themselves rather than spending it.

Examples of the dateless 20p initially fetched thousands of pounds on sites such as eBay as the national press got hold of the story, with one example selling for a reported (and unconfirmed) £7,100.

Some unscrupulous individuals tried to sell normal versions of the 20p, by taking photos of both old and new coins, whilst others even attempted to file the date off.

Thankfully the hype has subsided, though there are said to be forgeries out there too, so buyer beware!

The dateless 20p coin is now worth around £50 to £100.

Read more coin guides at www.allaboutcoins.co.uk