Mint Sets

This is a set of the last pre-decimal coins issued for circulation all the coins are Uncirculated and dated 1967. The set contains the 1/2d, 1d, 3d, 6d, 2/- and 2/6. There is no shilling as the last shilling was minted in 1966. The case is one of Sandhill plastic display cases and is being collected on its own, a dealer paid me £5 each for the empty cases. You get the case plus all the 1967 pre-decimal coins in uncirculated for just £19.50 but please remember that we only have 20 collections in stock.

In 1977 Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her Silver Jubilee or 25th anniversary as our Queen. The Royal Mint issued a special Crown to mark the occasion and more importantly, issued every denomination for that year for circulation. This is something that did not happen all that often. They also issued a Proof Set of these 1977 coins, but they did not issue a Mint Set in 1977. Years ago we obtained a quantity of the coins and had Sandhill make up a red white and blue display card for the 1977 Mint Set. It comes in a Sandhill case, which with the insert would cost you today at least £4-£5, as they are no longer made. You get the Halfpenny, Penny, Twopence, Five Pence, Ten Pence, 50 Pence and Crown. Only the Penny and Twopence are still being made today of the same size and even they are now made out of steel. All the other coins have been reduced in size except for the Halfpence and Crown which are no longer made. All of the coins are in Brilliant Uncirculated condition, remember the case and insert alone would cost you £4-£5 today, a bargain!

Brilliant Uncirculated 8 coin set in original card folder

The 1990 Mint Set is, in our opinion, a very important set. Three of the coins in the set were not issued for circulation. They are the 5p, 10p, and 50p coins. If you wanted to buy these on their own these three coins would cost considerably more than we charge for the complete set. The 1990 Mint Set contains the £1, 50p not issued for circulation, 20p, 10p not issued for circulation, 5p large-sized not issued for circulation, 5p small-sized, 2p and 1p. The coins are in fact, in specimen condition, which is halfway between Brilliant Uncirculated and Proof, so they are better than Brilliant Uncirculated coins. The whole set comes in a full colour package, loaded with information about the Shilling and the 5 Pence.

1994 was a year to remember, The Channel Tunnel was officially opened by the Queen and the French President, Nelson Mandela became president of South Africa, classic films such as Pulp Fiction and Forrest Gump were then released. The year also marked the 300th anniversary of the Bank of England. In 1994 The Royal Mint also issued its usual Mint Set of coins in Specimen Uncirculated. We have a small group where the outer folder is a bit worn, but the coins inside are perfect. You get 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p not issued for regular usage, 20p, 50p 50th anniversary of the end of World War II, £1 Scottish and £2 300th anniversary of the Bank of England. Some of these coins are tough to get especially in Specimen Uncirculated condition...

In 1968 the Royal Mint in preparations for the change over from Pre-decimal coins to Decimal coins issued a wallet of the new coins. It came in a blue plastic wallet and thus they became known as ‘Blue Wallets’. At one time these sets were as common as muck so to speak. Many of the wallets turned sticky because of the type of plastic they used. So there are now two grades of the wallets sticky and non-sticky. Ask someone today when were the first decimal coins and they are old enough to remember the changeover, they will say 1971 and they will be wrong. Because in these Blue Wallets which contain 1/2p, 1p, 2p, 5p and 10p the 5p and 10p are dated 1968! Today the marketing companies are breaking up these sets for the 1968 5p and 10p and you hardly ever see them. We bought 100 sets from a bank that just had them left over. Half were sticky and half were nice. Here we offer them in the non-sticky plastic case. Please remember the quality is about the case only. You get 1968 5p & 10p plus the 1971 ½, 1 and 2 New Pence all in Uncirculated condition.

In 1968 the Royal Mint in preparations for the change over from Pre-decimal coins to Decimal coins issued a wallet of the new coins. It came in a blue plastic wallet and thus they became known as ‘Blue Wallets’. At one time these sets were as common as muck so to speak. Many of the wallets turned sticky because of the type of plastic they used. So there are now two grades of the wallets sticky and non-sticky. Ask someone today when were the first decimal coins and they are old enough to remember the changeover, they will say 1971 and they will be wrong. Because in these Blue Wallets which contain 1/2p, 1p, 2p, 5p and 10p the 5p and 10p are dated 1968! Today the marketing companies are breaking up these sets for the 1968 5p and 10p and you hardly ever see them. We bought 100 sets from a bank that just had them left over. Half were sticky and half were nice. Here we offer them in the sticky plastic case. Please remember the quality is about the case only. You get 1968 5p & 10p plus the 1971 ½, 1 and 2 New Pence all in Uncirculated condition.

Each set contains the £1, 50p, 20p, 10p, 5p, 2p and 1p in Brilliant Uncirculated condition sealed in the Royal Mint packaging to keep them perfect. Important: the 10p and the 50p were NOT struck for circulation. So if you want either of these coins for your collection in Brilliant Uncirculated condition you will have to get them from this set.

In 1987 the Royal Mint issued the ‘Uncirculated’ set of the then current coins. We say Uncirculated but, in fact, they are much better quality, they are Specimens or Prooflike examples. The 1987 Mint Set includes: The English Pound, 50p, 20p, 10p, 5p, 2p, and 1p. The only problem for collectors is that the 1987 10p and 50p coins were not struck for circulation. That means that if you want either of these two coins then you will have to break up a set. This 1987 Mint Set comes in a full-colour folder with lots of interesting information about the coins.

8 coin set from 1/2p to £1 in specimen BU folder

7 coin set from 1p to £1 in specimen BU condition.

When the Royal Mint strikes coins, they strike them in three different qualities. The Proof coins for the Proof Sets, the Specimen coins for the Mint Sets and the Uncirculated for actual usage. The ones that are most difficult to get are the real Uncirculated coins. We have tried bank after bank and they just don’t have Uncirculated coins available. Perhaps the Royal Mint wants to protect their striking of Specimen and Proof Sets. The real Uncirculated set on offer, that is coins that were actually struck for usage by the public and not for inclusion into sets is dated 1997. You get the Uncirculated 50p, 20p, 10p, 5p, 2p and 1p, the coins are Brilliant Uncirculated with the occasional bag mark, but these coins were struck to be used and as such are extremely difficult to get. These were the last coins struck with the so-called Maklouf bust of the Queen on them. A very difficult set to get.