Jubilee 10p (Letter J)
The Jubilee 10p (Letter J) is a circulating A to Z 10p with 304,000 made. Value band: small premium. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2018
- Circulation mintage
- 304,000
- Value band
- Small premium
- Composition
- Nickel-plated steel
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a Jubilee 10p (Letter J) worth?
The A to Z 10p coins were made in small runs for circulation (220,000 dated 2018 and 84,000 dated 2019 for this letter). They were made to be collected. A circulated Jubilee 10p brings a small premium to collectors filling a set, more for the scarcer 2019 date and more again in uncirculated condition.
What would make yours worth more:
- The scarcer 2019 date
- Uncirculated condition
- An original collector card or pack
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the Jubilee 10p (Letter J) rare?
- It is scarcer than most A to Z 10p coins. Collectors pay a small premium for good examples.
- How many Jubilee 10p (Letter J) coins were made?
- 304,000 were struck for circulation.
- What is the Jubilee 10p (Letter J) made of?
- Nickel-plated steel. It weighs 6.5 g and measures 24.5 mm.
- Is the Jubilee 10p (Letter J) still legal tender?
- Yes. Every A to Z 10p is legal tender in the UK at face value.
Why the Jubilee 10p (Letter J) was made
A jubilee marks a monarch reaching a milestone on the throne. Britain celebrates them with gusto. Queen Victoria held a Golden Jubilee in 1887 and a Diamond Jubilee in 1897. Queen Elizabeth II marked her Silver Jubilee in 1977, her Golden Jubilee in 2002 and her Diamond Jubilee in 2012, each with national holidays, processions and street parties where neighbors dragged tables into the road, hung bunting from lampposts and shared sandwiches and cake.
Those street parties are as much a part of the tradition as the ceremonies in London. They bring together people who might otherwise barely say hello and photographs from 1977 of children in paper crowns still turn up in family albums all over the country. The Royal Mint chose the jubilee as its J for the 2018 A to Z 10p series, a design that celebrates royal anniversaries and the communities that turn out to mark them. When the coins were issued the Queen had already reigned longer than any other British monarch, having passed Queen Victoria's record in 2015. Her Platinum Jubilee was still four years away.
How to recognize it
The J design celebrates the festivities of a royal jubilee, with the letter as the centerpiece of the composition. Like all the A to Z coins, it is struck on a nickel-plated steel blank 24.5 mm across, weighs 6.5 g and has a milled edge. Jody Clark's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II is on the obverse with the date beside it. That date is where you need to look. J coins were issued dated 2018 and 2019 with identical reverses, so nothing on the design side will tell them apart. The 2019 coins were made in far smaller numbers, so they deserve a second look.
The other side carries Jody Clark's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, introduced in 2015 and the last of her reign.
Jubilee 10p (Letter J) by the numbers
Measured by how many were made, the Jubilee 10p (Letter J) ranks 15th lowest of 26 circulating A to Z 10p coins with a published mintage. The next scarcer is the Ice Cream Cone 10p (Letter I) (304,000); the next more common is the King Arthur 10p (Letter K) (304,000).
It was the only circulating commemorative A to Z 10p dated 2018.
Of the 304,000 Jubilee 10p coins, 220,000 are dated 2018 and 84,000 are dated 2019. About 2.6 coins were dated 2018 for every one dated 2019, which makes 2019 the date to look for.
What to check on your Jubilee 10p (Letter J)
- Confirm the letter and picture: J for Jubilee, with the date 2018 or 2019.
- Check the date. The 2019 coins had much smaller runs, so the same letter is scarcer with a 2019 date.
- Look at the surfaces under a light: coins from collector packs have unbroken luster, while change-worn coins show scuffs on the letter and design.
- Keep sets in order in a holder rather than loose; scratches on the large flat letter are easy to see.
For J the mintages are 220,000 for 2018 and 84,000 for 2019, the same as most of the alphabet. Interest in royal themes runs high in Britain. That gives the Jubilee coin a little extra appeal with people who collect royal souvenirs as well as coins. The 2019 date remains the one to look for, since a smaller run and plenty of eager collectors made it hard to come by. Condition still counts. A coin with a bright field and a clear letter is worth setting aside.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 10 pence |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2018 |
| Circulation mintage | 304,000 |
| Composition | Nickel-plated steel |
| Weight | 6.5 g |
| Diameter | 24.5 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Milled |
| Portrait | Clark |
Other 2018 A to Z 10p coins
Frequently asked questions
Which jubilee does the J 10p celebrate?
The J coin celebrates the royal jubilee tradition as a whole rather than one particular event. Its theme is the processions, bunting and street parties that have marked royal milestones such as the 1977, 2002 and 2012 jubilees.
How many Jubilee 10p coins were issued?
The Royal Mint struck 220,000 Jubilee 10p coins dated 2018 and 84,000 dated 2019 for circulation. The 2019 date is the scarcer version and the one most collectors are missing from their sets.
Mintage figures: Ten pence (British coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.