2020 Captain Cook III £2 Coin
The 2020 Captain Cook III £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
- 2020
- Issued as
- Collector packs and sets only
- Value band
- Small premium
- Designer
- Gary Breeze
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 2020 Captain Cook III £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 2020 Captain Cook III £2 rare?
- It is scarcer than most £2 coins. It was never issued into circulation, so most examples are in collector packs.
- How many 2020 Captain Cook III £2 coins were made?
- None were made for circulation. The Mint sold this design only in packs and sets.
- Who designed the 2020 Captain Cook III £2?
- The design is credited to Gary Breeze.
- What is the 2020 Captain Cook III £2 made of?
- Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring. It weighs 12.0 g and measures 28.4 mm.
- Is the 2020 Captain Cook III £2 still legal tender?
- Yes. Every two-metal £2 coin, commemoratives included, is legal tender in the UK.
Why the 2020 Captain Cook III £2 was made
After Tahiti, Endeavour sailed on to New Zealand, which Cook circumnavigated and charted, then crossed the Tasman Sea. In April 1770 the expedition landed at Botany Bay on the east coast of Australia. Cook went on to map much of that coastline before sailing home by way of Batavia, reaching England in 1771. The landing at Botany Bay is remembered very differently by Aboriginal Australians, for whom it marks the start of colonization. Cook later led two more Pacific voyages and was killed in Hawaii in 1779. This 2020 two-pound coin marks 250 years since the Australian stage of the first voyage and completes the Royal Mint's three-coin Captain Cook series that began in 2018.
Like its two partners, this final Cook coin was kept out of general circulation. It was sold only as a brilliant uncirculated coin and in the 2020 annual sets. Should one turn up in your change, it was first bought as a collectible before someone spent it. It is still legal tender, so a shop could take it from you for two pounds, though the complete set is what most collectors want.
How to recognize it
Gary Breeze shows the front half of HM Bark Endeavour, with CAPTAIN JAMES COOK 1770 - 2020 around the coin. Placed beside the 2018 stern coin and the 2019 middle coin, it completes the ship. The edge carries the same Latin found on the other two: OCEANI INVESTIGATOR ACERRIMVS, meaning "a keen explorer of the ocean". The obverse shows the Jody Clark portrait of Queen Elizabeth II. Look for the 1770 date and the bow of the ship to make sure you have the third coin and not the first or second. Of the three, only this one names the year 1770.
The other side carries Jody Clark's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, introduced in 2015 and the last of her reign.
2020 Captain Cook III £2 by the numbers
No circulation mintage exists for the 2020 Captain Cook III £2 because none were released to banks. The Royal Mint's other collector-only £2 coins dated 2020 were Mayflower, Agatha Christie and VE Day 75.
No commemorative £2 dated 2020 was released for circulation, which is why so many people hunting change for new designs never see this one.
What to check on your 2020 Captain Cook III £2
- Read the edge. It should say OCEANI INVESTIGATOR ACERRIMVS. 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.
No coins were issued for circulation, so all three Cook coins are uncommon finds in change. This last one is in steady demand from people completing the set. Bright pack coins carry a collector premium; worn ones carry a small premium. A quick genuine check: make sure the Latin edge is struck evenly and spelled with a V in place of the U in ACERRIMVS, that the two metals show clearly different colors and that there's no gap where the ring meets the center.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 2 pounds |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2020 |
| 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: OCEANI INVESTIGATOR ACERRIMVS |
| Designer | Gary Breeze |
| Portrait | Clark |
Other 2020 £2 coins
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 Mayflower £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2020 Agatha Christie £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2020 VE Day 75 £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
Frequently asked questions
What year is the last Captain Cook £2?
2020. It shows the front of the Endeavour with CAPTAIN JAMES COOK 1770 - 2020 around it and marks 250 years since the voyage reached Australia. It completes the set that began with the 2018 stern coin.
What does OCEANI INVESTIGATOR ACERRIMVS mean?
It's Latin for "a keen explorer of the ocean". The phrase appears on the edge of all three Captain Cook £2 coins from 2018 to 2020, tying the series together.
Mintage figures: Two pound coin (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.