2 Pounds - Elizabeth II 4th portrait World War I mule (2014)
"Kitchener £2 mule"
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Year | 2014 |
| Denomination | 2 Pounds |
| Face value | £2 |
| Mint | Royal Mint · Llantrisant |
| Circulation | Circulating |
| Composition | Bimetallic: copper-nickel center in nickel brass ring |
| Weight | 12.000g |
| Diameter | 28.4mm |
| Thickness | 2.50mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Milled with inscription: THE LAMPS ARE GOING OUT ALL OVER EUROPE |
| Orientation | Medal alignment ↑↑ |
| Obv. artist | Ian Rank-Broadley |
| Rev. artist | John Bergdahl |
| Grade scale | UK (EF/UNC) |
© narracan coins –
ELIZABETH II · DEI · GRA · REG · FID · DEF ·
© The Royal
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AffiliateWorld War I mule £2 price history
Daily limit reachedAbout the 2014 2 Pounds - Elizabeth II – World War I mule
The 2014 2 Pounds - Elizabeth II – World War I mule is a circulating 2 pounds coin, struck in bimetallic: copper-nickel center in nickel brass ring. It weighs 12g and measures 28.4mm across. Reverse design: © The Royal.
Common questions
How much is the 2014 2 Pounds - Elizabeth II – World War I mule worth?
No verified sale of the 2014 2 Pounds - Elizabeth II – World War I mule has been logged on MyCoinage yet.
How do I tell if my Kitchener £2 is the mule?
Look at the Queen's side. The normal coin's legend ends with TWO POUNDS below the portrait. The mule has no denomination anywhere and its legend reads ELIZABETH II DEI GRA REG FID DEF, with the titles spelled out further. The Kitchener side and the edge are identical on both.
How many Kitchener £2 mules were made?
Nobody knows. The Royal Mint has published no figure, and the first auction listing said the mintage was unknown. Coin Hunter offers its own estimate of 100. Change Checker said in 2019 that it had heard of only two reports of the coin being found.
Has the Kitchener £2 mule been confirmed as genuine?
An example sold by Lockdales on 28 March 2020 was described as authenticated by the Royal Mint Museum, with accompanying letters. A later press report describes another sale with a signed Royal Mint Museum letter. No public Royal Mint statement about the error was found.
Which die caused the Kitchener £2 error?
It is not settled. Change Checker suggests an obverse die for the 2014 Trinity House £2, which has no denomination on that side. The standard Technology £2 obverse carries the same legend, so the wording alone cannot show which die was used.
Is a Kitchener £2 with upside-down edge lettering the error coin?
No. The Royal Mint says edge inscriptions are rolled onto the blank before striking and can face either way, with no right or wrong way. The recorded mule differs only on the Queen's side, where the words TWO POUNDS are absent.
How do I identify the 2014 2 Pounds - Elizabeth II – World War I mule?
Check the weight 12g and diameter 28.4mm and the metal (bimetallic: copper-nickel center in nickel brass ring) against the specification table on this page. The reverse design is described above.
History and design
The 2014 First World War £2, known as the Kitchener £2, has no statement of value on its reverse. For that reason the royal proclamation for the coin puts the denomination on the Queen's side: the legend ELIZABETH II D G REG FID DEF with TWO POUNDS. The Royal Mint's figures record 5,720,000 of the normal coin struck for circulation.
A small number of Kitchener coins are recorded with an obverse that has no denomination at all. Collectors call this the Kitchener mule, and the number made is unknown. The first example sold publicly was offered by Lockdales on 28 March 2020, described as authenticated by the Royal Mint Museum, with accompanying letters, and with the mintage "currently unknown".
The reverse is the normal one by John Bergdahl: Lord Kitchener pointing, with YOUR COUNTRY NEEDS YOU below him and THE FIRST WORLD WAR 1914 to 1918 and the date 2014 around the design. The edge carries the usual incuse inscription THE LAMPS ARE GOING OUT ALL OVER EUROPE.
The difference is on the obverse. It has the same fourth portrait of Elizabeth II by Ian Rank-Broadley, but Coin Hunter records the legend as ELIZABETH II DEI GRA REG FID DEF, with the titles less abbreviated and nothing below the portrait. Nothing on the coin states that it is a £2.
Varieties and errors
Which die produced the error is not established. Change Checker suggests, as a possibility, that an obverse die for the 2014 Trinity House £2 was not replaced when Kitchener production began. The Trinity House proclamation does give that coin the legend ELIZABETH II DEI GRA REG FID DEF with no denomination, which matches. The standard Technology £2 obverse carries the same wording, however, so the legend alone cannot identify the die.
Change Checker wrote in 2019 that it had heard of two reports of the coin being found. Coin Hunter gives an estimate of 100, which is its own figure and not an official one. No public Royal Mint statement on the error was found.
A Kitchener £2 with TWO POUNDS on the Queen's side is the normal coin. Edge lettering that reads upside down is not an error on any £2, according to the Royal Mint. A Trinity House £2 without a denomination on the obverse is also normal.
Collecting notes
Identification rests entirely on the obverse, so confirm the whole legend, not just the absence of the two words. Wear or damage below the portrait can remove lettering, but it will not change D G into DEI GRA.
The examples reported sold have come with Royal Mint Museum letters. Change Checker notes that the Royal Mint will examine a suspected mis-strike and supply a letter setting out its findings. No proof or precious-metal version of the mule is recorded. The normal coin is the Kitchener £2.
Sources
The history, design, varieties and collecting notes on this page are drawn from these sources. Prices come from recorded sales, not from them.
- Two Pound Coin Designs and Specifications, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Why does the edge inscription on the £2 and £1 coins sometimes appear "upside down"?, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Coins and Collectables 175, lot 2165: Error Mule Two Pounds 2014, Lockdales Auctioneers (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Have I found a rare coin? £2 errors explained, Change Checker (read 9 Oct 2026)
- 2014 First World War Centenary £2 Coin, Coin Hunter (read 9 Oct 2026)
- And finally: your country needs you (15 February 2024), Scottish Financial News (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Proclamation determining the specifications and design for two-pound coins commemorating the centenary of the First World War (London Gazette issue 60681, 8 November 2013), The London Gazette (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Proclamation determining the specifications and design for two-pound coins commemorating the five hundredth anniversary of the founding of Trinity House (London Gazette issue 60681, 8 November 2013), The London Gazette (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Great Britain, proof two pounds, bimetallic issue (1998), Royal Collection Trust (read 9 Oct 2026)
- UK coin mintage figures (data file), The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
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