1986 20p Coin
The 1986 20p 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
- 1986
- Issued as
- Collector packs and sets only
- Value band
- Small premium
- Composition
- Cupronickel (84% copper, 16% nickel)
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 1986 20p worth?
No 1986 20p coin was issued for circulation: the Royal Mint struck that date only for its annual collector sets. A set coin that was spent can turn up in change, which is why 1986 is a date collectors look for. Expect a small premium, more for coins still in the original set.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition
- A sets-only date
- A genuine error such as the undated 2008 mule
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 1986 20p rare?
- It is scarcer than most 20p coins. It was never issued into circulation, so most examples are in collector packs.
- How many 1986 20p coins were made?
- None were made for circulation. The Mint sold this design only in packs and sets.
- What is the 1986 20p made of?
- Cupronickel (84% copper, 16% nickel). It weighs 5.0 g and measures 21.4 mm, with a seven-sided (equilateral curve heptagon) shape.
- Is the 1986 20p still legal tender?
- Yes. Every 20p, including the undated 2008 coin, is legal tender in the UK.
The 1986 20p coin in context
If you are working through a run of 20p coins from change you will hit a gap at 1986. No 20ps with that date were struck for circulation. The reason is plain arithmetic. In the four years from 1982 to 1985 the Royal Mint had produced more than a billion 20ps, with more than two thirds of them in the launch year alone. Banks had plenty of stock and demand for fresh coins had dropped away, so the presses were turned over to other work.
The date still exists, but only in the annual collector sets the Royal Mint sold that year, in both uncirculated and proof finishes. Every genuine 1986 20p began life in one of those packs. Some sets were broken open over the years and their coins spent, which is why one occasionally turns up in a purse or a jar. The production pause didn't last long. In 1987 the Mint struck 137,450,000 for circulation, the biggest figure since 1983. That quick return is a good sign that the 1986 gap was about stock levels, not any change to the coin itself.
How to recognize it
The coin looks just like the 20ps around it. The obverse has Raphael Maklouf's portrait of the Queen in the State Diadem, in its second year on the denomination, with RDM below the neck. The reverse is William Gardner's crowned double rose with TWENTY PENCE, the figure 20 and the date 1986. The specifications are the standard ones: seven curved sides, 21.4 mm, 5 g, cupronickel and a plain edge. Proof coins from the sets have mirror-like fields with a frosted design, which makes them easy to tell from the satin finish of the uncirculated version. Either way, the date on the reverse is the only quick way to identify it.
The other side carries Raphael Maklouf's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, used from 1985 to 1997.
1986 20p by the numbers
No 1986 20p coins were struck for circulation, so none were paid out by banks. For comparison, nearby circulation dates were 1983 20p (158.5 million), 1984 20p (65.4 million), 1985 20p (74.3 million), 1987 20p (137.4 million), 1988 20p (38 million) and 1989 20p (132 million).
What to check on your 1986 20p
- Confirm the date. 1986 20p coins came only from collector sets, so a genuine one is often in very good condition.
- Count the sides: a genuine 20p has seven curved sides, measures 21.4 mm and weighs 5 g.
- Look at the surfaces under a light. Coins from sets have unbroken luster and color; change-worn coins are dull and scuffed.
- Never clean it. Rubbing or dipping strips the original color and leaves fine scratches.
As a sets-only date, the 1986 is one of the harder 20ps to fill in a date run. Coins from sets carry a small premium. The best source is an intact 1986 set, which keeps the coin protected and shows where it came from. A loose coin found in change will usually have some wear and sit close to face value, but it is still a good find for anyone building a full run. Keep it in a holder so it doesn't pick up more marks. File it with the 2017 and 2018 coins, the other two sets-only dates.
The crowned rose with the Machin and Maklouf portraits (1982 to 1997)
The 20p was launched on 9 June 1982 to sit between the 10p and the 50p. Rising prices had left people paying for everyday things in fistfuls of 10p pieces and a coin worth two of them was the obvious fix. It also arrived in the year British coins stopped saying NEW, so it read TWENTY PENCE from the very first strike. William Gardner's reverse put a crowned double rose at the center, the Tudor emblem uniting Lancaster and York, with the figure 20 and the year on the same face.
Two portraits of the Queen cover these years. Arnold Machin's version, with the Queen in a tiara, was used for just three dates, 1982 to 1984. From 1985 Raphael Maklouf's portrait took over, showing her in the George IV State Diadem with RDM below the neck. Output swung wildly. The launch needed 740,815,000 coins, then the figure fell to 158,463,000 in 1983 and 65,350,965 in 1984. None at all were made for change in 1986. After that, big years such as 1987 and 1989 alternated with lean ones. 1991 and 1992 both came in below 36 million before a rebound to 123,123,750 in 1993.
Physically the coin never changed: seven curved sides of constant width, 21.4 mm, 5 g of cupronickel that is 84% copper and 16% nickel with a plain edge. The dates that reward a search are the sets-only 1986 plus the low runs of 1988, 1991 and 1992. A 1984 Machin coin next to a 1985 Maklouf one makes a neat pair showing the portrait change. On worn coins the rose petals and the arches of the crown go first, so judge condition there. Set coins are the easy way to own these dates unworn.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 20 pence |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 1986 |
| Circulation mintage | None (collector issue) |
| Composition | Cupronickel (84% copper, 16% nickel) |
| Weight | 5.0 g |
| Diameter | 21.4 mm |
| Shape | Seven-sided (equilateral curve heptagon) |
| Edge | Plain |
| Portrait | Maklouf |
Frequently asked questions
Why is there no 1986 20p in circulation?
The Royal Mint had made more than a billion 20ps between 1982 and 1985, which was enough to meet demand. None were struck for circulation in 1986, so the date was made only for the collector sets sold that year.
Is a 1986 20p found in change valuable?
It almost certainly came from a broken set. That makes it an unusual find, but a worn one is close to face value. A coin still in its original set, or one in sharp condition, carries a small premium.
Mintage figures: Twenty pence (British coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.