2023 Ada Lovelace £2 Coin
The 2023 Ada Lovelace £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
- 2023
- Issued as
- Collector packs and sets only
- Value band
- Small premium
- Designer
- Osborne Ross
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 2023 Ada Lovelace £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 2023 Ada Lovelace £2 rare?
- It is scarcer than most £2 coins. It was never issued into circulation, so most examples are in collector packs.
- How many 2023 Ada Lovelace £2 coins were made?
- None were made for circulation. The Mint sold this design only in packs and sets.
- Who designed the 2023 Ada Lovelace £2?
- The design is credited to Osborne Ross.
- What is the 2023 Ada Lovelace £2 made of?
- Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring. It weighs 12.0 g and measures 28.4 mm.
- Is the 2023 Ada Lovelace £2 still legal tender?
- Yes. Every two-metal £2 coin, commemoratives included, is legal tender in the UK.
Why the 2023 Ada Lovelace £2 was made
Ada Lovelace was born in 1815, the daughter of the poet Lord Byron. Trained in mathematics from childhood, she worked with Charles Babbage on his designs for the Analytical Engine, a mechanical computer that was never built. In 1843 she published notes on the machine that included a method for it to calculate a sequence of numbers, often called the first computer program. She also saw that such a machine could work with symbols as well as numbers. She died in 1852. This coin is part of the Royal Mint's Innovation in Science two-pound run, alongside Alexander Graham Bell and Edward Jenner.
The Lovelace £2 was sold only to collectors as a brilliant uncirculated coin and in the 2023 annual sets. None were sent to banks for circulation. So one picked up in change was bought new, opened and later spent, perhaps by someone who never noticed what the design showed. It's still legal tender with a face value of two pounds. If you're keeping it, a soft holder will protect it from further wear.
How to recognize it
Osborne Ross's design shows a punchcard of the kind the Analytical Engine was designed to use, along with text describing Lovelace as a discoverer of the hidden realities of nature, a phrase she used about herself in an 1841 letter to her mother. The grid of holes and the lines of text give the coin a technical, almost diagrammatic feel, with no portrait of Lovelace herself. The edge reads INNOVATION IN SCIENCE LOVELACE, matching the series format. The obverse carries King Charles III by Martin Jennings. The punchcard grid and the LOVELACE edge set it apart from any other £2.
The other side carries Martin Jennings' portrait of King Charles III, first used in 2022.
2023 Ada Lovelace £2 by the numbers
No circulation mintage exists for the 2023 Ada Lovelace £2 because none were released to banks. The Royal Mint's other collector-only £2 coins dated 2023 were J. R. R. Tolkien, Edward Jenner and Flying Scotsman.
No commemorative £2 dated 2023 was released for circulation, which is why so many people hunting change for new designs never see this one.
What to check on your 2023 Ada Lovelace £2
- Read the edge. It should say INNOVATION IN SCIENCE LOVELACE. 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.
There's no circulation mintage, so a spent Lovelace £2 is uncommon in change. Interest comes from people working in computing as well as collectors completing the Innovation in Science coins. A sharp pack coin attracts a collector premium; a worn one a small premium. The tiny holes in the punchcard design wear quickly, so look at them for condition. A genuine coin has edge lettering ending in LOVELACE, crisp two-tone metals and an inner disc that sits exactly level with the ring.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 2 pounds |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2023 |
| 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: INNOVATION IN SCIENCE LOVELACE |
| Designer | Osborne Ross |
| Portrait | Jennings |
Other 2023 £2 coins
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 J. R. R. Tolkien £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2023 Edward Jenner £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
| 2023 Flying Scotsman £2 Coin | Collector issue | Small premium |
| National Flowers £2 Coin (2023 to today) | – | Face value |
Frequently asked questions
Why is there a punchcard on the Ada Lovelace £2?
The Analytical Engine that Lovelace wrote about was designed to take instructions on punched cards. Her notes on the machine included what is often called the first computer program, so the punchcard links the coin to her work.
Was the Ada Lovelace £2 released into circulation?
No. It was sold only in brilliant uncirculated packs and the 2023 annual sets. One found in change was spent from a pack. It is still legal tender at two pounds and carries King Charles III on the obverse.
Mintage figures: Two pound coin (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.