2 Pence - Elizabeth II 2nd portrait Mule - New Pence (1983)

About the 1983 2 Pence - Elizabeth II – Mule - New Pence

The 1983 2 Pence - Elizabeth II – Mule - New Pence is a collector 2 pence coin, struck in bronze. It weighs 7.12g and measures 25.9mm across. Reverse design: The badge of the Prince of Wales, a plume of three ostrich feathers enfiling a coronet of cross pattée and fleur de lis, dividing motto with legend above and denomination below.

Common questions

History and design

When the 2p was introduced on 15 February 1971 its reverse read NEW PENCE, wording chosen to set the decimal coins apart from the old money. The Royal Mint dropped the word NEW in 1982, and from that year the coin read TWO PENCE.

The Royal Mint's account is that a small number of 2p coins were mistakenly struck that year with the earlier NEW PENCE wording on the reverse. A coin made from two dies that do not belong together is called a mule, and here a 1983 obverse was paired with a reverse die of the pre-1982 type.

The mistake did not reach the public through banks. The Royal Mint says the coins were produced to brilliant uncirculated quality and included in special sets intended for collectors. No 2p coins were struck for circulation in 1983, and the Royal Mint's circulating figures have no 2p entry for 1982, 1983 or 1984.

How many exist is not known. The Royal Mint has never published a number and says only that relatively few are in circulation. Change Checker states that the quantity struck is not known, and the dealer Drake Sterling describes it as an unknown number.

The reverse is Christopher Ironside's design, used on the 2p from 1971 to 2008. On this coin it carries the words NEW PENCE where a 1983 coin should read TWO PENCE. That wording is the error.

The obverse is the portrait of Elizabeth II by Arnold Machin, used on the 2p from 1971 to 1984, with the date 1983. The coin is bronze (97% copper, 2.5% zinc and 0.5% tin) with a plain edge. Bronze was the alloy of the 2p until September 1992.

Varieties and errors

There is one error and it is easy to misidentify. Every 2p dated 1971 to 1981 reads NEW PENCE, and those are ordinary coins made in huge numbers: the Royal Mint lists 353,191,000 for 1981 alone. Change Checker warns that NEW PENCE coins of other dates are passed off as the 1983 error. The date must be 1983. A 1983 2p reading TWO PENCE is the correct coin for that year.

Collecting notes

Collectors and dealers report that the known examples came from Martini and Heinz branded uncirculated sets of 1983. The Royal Mint has not confirmed which sets were involved. Most of these sets contain a normal TWO PENCE coin, so the 2p in each set has to be looked at.

Because the coins were struck to uncirculated standard and sealed in sets, a genuine example usually shows little wear. A worn one has been taken out and spent. Drake Sterling notes that only a handful have been certified by PCGS.

Check both sides before anything else: 1983 on the obverse, NEW PENCE on the reverse. Change Checker readers have also reported altered pieces made from two coins joined together, so examine the edge for a seam and compare the weight with a normal bronze 2p at 7.12g.