The 1933 penny is worth over £200,000 (Image: Cheeky Highlander)
People across Britain should keep an eye out for a rare penny coin that’s worth over £200,000. It comes after an antique shop owner thought he had been given the 1933 penny – only to learn that it had been forged and the real versions are still out there.
A man found the coin while checking through his collection and took it to the Cheeky Highlander antique shop in Tain, Scotland. After it appeared to be a 1933 penny, of which are believed to only be six or seven in circulation, shop owner Marcus Salter took the coin to the Royal Mint Museum in Wales for analysis. Professionals checked the penny using a spectrometer before concluding that it did not fit either of the two most common types of forgeries. They even compared it against the museum’s own legitimate penny.
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However, after acknowlegding that the penny was “one of the better counterfeit types”, the experts confirmed that it was not legitimate. They said that the weight and diameter of the penny were slightly off and not in line with a piece produced by the Royal Mint.
An email from the Royal Mint Museum to Marcus said, as shared by the : “Thanks for bringing the 1933 penny for authentication. We see a number of supposed 1933 pennies, many of which are simply altered or modified dates, or are plainly obvious replicas. But this example is one of the better counterfeit types.”
It added: “The gauge is not consistent across the piece. The coin is thicker in one end than the other. This is all indicative that the coin is counterfeit.”
The museum concluded by saying that the penny “is a good reproduction” but ultimately not a “genuine 1933 penny”. Marcus admitted that he was disappointed by the news but would still be taking the penny to auction.
He said on the Cheeky Podcast: “It’ll still be in the auction – I can’t tell you how disappointed I am. But yeah, we came close. It’s a shame.”
The 1933 penny was not legitimate (Image: Cheeky Highlander)
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Why is the 1933 penny so rare?
The 1933 penny is rare because only a small number were struck by the Royal Mint. They decided to stop making the pennies because there were so many in supply.
However, they struck a small amount to bury under the foundations of new buildings. Meanwhile, a few others were kept by the Royal Mint Museum and the British Museum.
While there is no accurate record of the number of pennies in supply, it is believed there are only six or seven left in Britons’ pockets.