Scarce: fewer than 2,000,000 minted. Sells often: 79 verified sales in the last 12 months.
50 Pence - Elizabeth II 4th portrait Sailing (2011)
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Year | 2011 |
| Denomination | 50 Pence |
| Face value | 50p |
| Mintage | 1,749,500 |
| Mint | Royal Mint · Llantrisant |
| Series | Olympic 50p (2011) |
| Circulation | Circulating |
| Composition | Copper-nickel |
| Weight | 8.000g |
| Diameter | 27.3mm |
| Thickness | 1.78mm |
| Shape | Equilateral curve heptagon (7-sided) |
| Edge | Plain |
| Orientation | Medal alignment ↑↑ |
| Obv. artist | Ian Rank-Broadley |
| Rev. artist | Bruce Rushin |
| Grade scale | UK (EF/UNC) |
Fourth crowned portrait of Queen Elizabeth II right, wearing the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara, legend around
Three sailing boats on water with a map of the coast of Weymouth in the background, London 2012 logo above, denomination below.
50 PENCE
Sailing 50p market value
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AffiliateSailing 50p price history
Daily limit reachedSailing 50p value by grade
Realised auction prices · ⭐ Pro Expand rows for individual sale records| Grade | Latest | Median | 30d Δ | All-time range | Sales (1yr) | Total sales | Last sale | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNC | £4.38 🔒 eBay | £4.31 | – | £2.46 – £5.25 | 9 | 9 | 06-09-2026 | |
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| BU | £5.02 🔒 eBay | £5.24 | – | £4.27 – £5.95 | 4 | 4 | 30-05-2026 | |
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| VF | £4.02 🔒 eBay | £2.36 | ▼5.2% | £0.62 – £4.38 | 66 | 66 | 16-10-2026 | |
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About the 2011 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Sailing
The 2011 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Sailing is a circulating 50 pence coin in the Olympic 50p (2011) series, struck in copper-nickel. It weighs 8g and measures 27.3mm across. Reverse design: Three sailing boats on water with a map of the coast of Weymouth in the background, London 2012 logo above, denomination below.
1,749,500 were struck.
Common questions
How much is the 2011 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Sailing worth?
Verified sold prices for the 2011 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Sailing run from £2.36 to £5.24 across 3 grades, taking the median for each grade. Condition makes the difference, so check the grade table above before pricing one.
How many Olympic Sailing 50p coins were made?
1,749,500 were struck for circulation, according to the Royal Mint's mintage figures. That is the exact middle of the 29 London 2012 sport 50p designs: fourteen have a lower figure and fourteen a higher one.
Is the Sailing 50p rare?
No. Its mintage of 1,749,500 is the median of the Olympic 50p series in the Royal Mint's figures, with fourteen designs scarcer and fourteen more common. The scarcest, Football, has a mintage of 1,125,500, and the most common, Archery, 3,345,500.
Who designed the Olympic Sailing 50p?
Bruce Rushin, who had won the 1997 competition to design the new £2 coin. He said the Sailing 50p was his first successful coin design since then. The obverse portrait of Queen Elizabeth II is by Ian Rank-Broadley.
What does the Sailing 50p show?
Three sailing dinghies on stylised waves, with a map of the coast near Weymouth behind them showing Chesil Beach and Portland Bill, where the Olympic regatta was held. The background lines are the latitude and longitude lines of a nautical chart.
Why is the Sailing 50p dated 2011 and not 2012?
All of the London 2012 sport 50p coins in the Royal Mint's mintage figures are listed under 2011, although they mark the 2012 Games. The royal proclamation setting out the designs came into force on 12 May 2010, well ahead of the Games, and the Sailing coin carries the date 2011.
How do I identify the 2011 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Sailing?
Check the weight 8g and diameter 27.3mm and the metal (copper-nickel) against the specification table on this page. The reverse design is described above.
History and design
The Sailing 50p is one of 29 designs issued for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, one for each sport, chosen through a design competition open to the general public. The royal proclamation setting out the designs came into force on 12 May 2010, and the coin is dated 2011.
The Royal Mint's figures give a circulating mintage of 1,749,500. That is the exact middle of the series: fourteen of the 29 designs have lower figures and fourteen have higher ones. Its neighbours are Basketball (1,748,000), only 1,500 coins below, and Wheelchair Rugby (1,765,500). The scarcest design, Football, stands at 1,125,500 and the most common, Archery, at 3,345,500.
The reverse is by Bruce Rushin, who already had a circulating coin to his name. He won the 1997 competition to design the new £2 coin and told the Royal Mint Museum that he had kept submitting designs ever since, with this the first success.
Rushin said he lives in the Norfolk Broads and does not sail himself, but has always loved watching the yachts go past. He was inspired by the successes of Ben Ainslie and was surprised to learn how small the dinghies are, so that is the type of boat he drew. Three of them cross stylised waves, one leading and two trailing.
The setting is specific. The Olympic regatta was held off Weymouth, and Rushin worked the outline of Chesil Beach and Portland Bill into the design. Instead of sky or clouds, he said, he filled the background with "latitude and longitude lines of a nautical chart".
The London 2012 logo sits above and 50 PENCE below. The obverse carries the fourth portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Ian Rank-Broadley. The edge is plain.
Collecting notes
No recognised varieties or mint errors are documented for this coin. Marks, discolouration and flattened detail on a coin from change are wear, not errors.
On a used example, check that the chart lines and the outline of the coast are still visible behind the boats.
The Royal Mint has offered examples that it describes as struck for general circulation and later acquired from the secondary market. The 2010 proclamation also provided for the designs to be struck in gold, a separate issue from the 1,749,500 circulation coins.
The coin was made for general circulation and can still turn up in change. Rushin's earlier design is the Technology £2. The scarcest coin in the Olympic series is the Football 50p.
Sources
The history, design, varieties and collecting notes on this page are drawn from these sources. Prices come from recorded sales, not from them.
- 2011 Elizabeth II London Olympic Sailing 50p Coin, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Sailing fifty pence piece, The Royal Mint Museum (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Proclamation determining the specifications and designs for fifty pence coins commemorating the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, London Gazette issue 59419, 14 May 2010, The Gazette (read 9 Oct 2026)
- UK coin mintage figures (data file), The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- 50p Coin Designs and Specifications, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- 2011 Olympic Sailing 50p (London 2012), Coin Hunter (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Olympic 50 pence pieces, The Royal Mint Museum (read 9 Oct 2026)
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