2018 Armistice £2 Coin
The 2018 Armistice £2 is a Royal Mint collector issue that was never released into circulation. Value band: small premium. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2018
- Issued as
- Collector packs and sets only
- Value band
- Small premium
- Designer
- Stephen Raw
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 2018 Armistice £2 worth?
This design was never released into circulation. The Royal Mint sold it in brilliant uncirculated packs and annual sets, so almost every example is a collector piece. One found in change is still legal tender at 2 pounds; out of its pack it brings a small premium at most, while a coin still sealed in its original packaging is what collectors want.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with crisp edge lettering
- Original Royal Mint pack or presentation folder
- A genuine mint error such as a misaligned or wrong edge, confirmed by an expert
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 2018 Armistice £2 rare?
- It is scarcer than most £2 coins. It was never issued into circulation, so most examples are in collector packs.
- How many 2018 Armistice £2 coins were made?
- None were made for circulation. The Mint sold this design only in packs and sets.
- Who designed the 2018 Armistice £2?
- The design is credited to Stephen Raw.
- What is the 2018 Armistice £2 made of?
- Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring. It weighs 12.0 g and measures 28.4 mm.
- Is the 2018 Armistice £2 still legal tender?
- Yes. Every two-metal £2 coin, commemoratives included, is legal tender in the UK.
Why the 2018 Armistice £2 was made
The guns on the Western Front fell silent at 11 o'clock on 11 November 1918 when the Armistice came into force. The war poet Wilfred Owen did not live to see it. He was killed in action on 4 November 1918 as his unit tried to cross a canal in northern France, just a week before the fighting stopped. The news reached his family as the bells rang for peace. Most of his poems were published only after his death. They made him one of the best known voices of the war. This coin closed the Royal Mint's First World War centenary series of two-pound coins, marking a hundred years since the Armistice with Owen's own words.
The Armistice £2 was produced for collectors only. It was never distributed to banks or post offices and so never entered general circulation in the normal way. The Royal Mint offered it as a brilliant uncirculated coin and in the 2018 annual sets. Any example handed over as change has therefore been spent out of a collector pack at some point. It keeps its full legal tender status at two pounds.
How to recognize it
This is a lettering design with no picture at all. In the middle sits THE TRUTH UNTOLD THE PITY OF WAR, words taken from Owen's poem Strange Meeting, with THE FIRST WORLD WAR ARMISTICE 1918 running around the outside. The letterforms are by Stephen Raw, a lettering artist. They have a handwritten, slightly uneven feel that sets them apart from the formal capitals on most coins. The edge reads WILFRED OWEN KILLED IN ACTION 4 NOV 1918. The obverse shows Queen Elizabeth II by Jody Clark. If your coin carries Owen's lines on the face and his date of death on the edge, you've found the Armistice £2.
The other side carries Jody Clark's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, introduced in 2015 and the last of her reign.
2018 Armistice £2 by the numbers
No circulation mintage exists for the 2018 Armistice £2 because none were released to banks. The Royal Mint's other collector-only £2 coins dated 2018 were RAF Centenary, Captain Cook I and Frankenstein.
No commemorative £2 dated 2018 was released for circulation, which is why so many people hunting change for new designs never see this one.
What to check on your 2018 Armistice £2
- Read the edge. It should say WILFRED OWEN KILLED IN ACTION 4 NOV 1918. A wrong or missing edge inscription is the quickest sign of a counterfeit.
- Check the two metals: a silver-colored center and a gold-colored ring, with the ring tight and level all the way around.
- Weigh it: a genuine two-metal £2 weighs 12.0 g. Fakes are often a little light and softer in detail.
- Compare the portrait and lettering with a known genuine coin. Blurry letters, a flat portrait or uneven spacing point to a copy.
None were made for circulation, so this design is much harder to spot in change than the earlier war centenary £2 coins that went through banks. Collectors who want the whole First World War run need it to finish their set. Condition counts. An uncirculated coin from a pack or set earns a collector premium, while a worn one tends to bring a small premium. On a genuine coin the edge lettering is evenly spaced right round the rim and the inner disc is gripped firmly by the outer ring.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 2 pounds |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2018 |
| Circulation mintage | None (collector issue) |
| Composition | Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring |
| Weight | 12.0 g |
| Diameter | 28.4 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Lettered: WILFRED OWEN KILLED IN ACTION 4 NOV 1918 |
| Designer | Stephen Raw |
| Portrait | Clark |
Other 2018 £2 coins
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 RAF Centenary £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2018 Captain Cook I £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2018 Frankenstein £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
Frequently asked questions
What is written on the Armistice £2 coin?
The reverse reads THE TRUTH UNTOLD THE PITY OF WAR, from Wilfred Owen's poem Strange Meeting, inside THE FIRST WORLD WAR ARMISTICE 1918. The edge adds WILFRED OWEN KILLED IN ACTION 4 NOV 1918.
Is the 2018 Armistice £2 worth keeping?
Yes, if you found it in change. It was never issued through banks, so it turns up rarely and completes the First World War centenary run. Expect a small premium for a worn coin and a collector premium for a clean one.
Mintage figures: Two pound coin (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.