Uncommon: fewer than 10,000,000 minted. Sells often: 262 verified sales in the last 12 months.
50 Pence - Elizabeth II 5th Portrait Sherlock Holmes (2019)
"Sherlock Holmes 50p"
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Year | 2019 |
| Denomination | 50 Pence |
| Face value | 50p |
| Mintage | 8,602,000 |
| Mint | Royal Mint · Llantrisant |
| Circulation | Circulating |
| Composition | Copper-nickel |
| Weight | 8.000g |
| Diameter | 27.3mm |
| Shape | Equilateral curve heptagon (7-sided) |
| Edge | Plain |
| Orientation | Medal alignment ↑↑ |
| Obv. artist | Jody Clark |
| Rev. artist | Stephen Raw |
| Grade scale | UK (EF/UNC) |
Fifth crowned portrait of Queen Elizabeth II right, wearing the George IV State Diadem, legend around.
ELIZABETH II · DEI · GRA · REG · FID · DEF · 2019
Silhouette of Sherlock Holmes smoking a pipe facing left with lists of the novels either side and denomination below.
SHERLOCK HOLMES 50 PENCE
Sherlock Holmes 50p market value
Find this on eBay
AffiliateSherlock Holmes 50p price history
Daily limit reachedSherlock Holmes 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 | £3.30 🔒 eBay | £3.31 | – | £0.63 – £24.99 | 23 | 23 | 06-10-2026 | |
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| BU | £5.45 🔒 eBay | £6.28 | – | £1.17 – £21.50 | 58 | 58 | 14-10-2026 | |
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| VF | £0.63 🔒 eBay | £1.50 | ▼23.3% | £0.53 – £1,250.00 | 176 | 179 | 16-10-2026 | |
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| PR-65 | £1.99 🔒 eBay | £8.79 | – | £1.99 – £9.29 | 3 | 3 | 30-08-2026 | |
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| PR-69 | £75.00 🔒 eBay | £75.00 (1) | – | £75.00 – £75.00 | 1 | 1 | 17-05-2026 | |
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| PR-70 | £148.00 🔒 eBay | £148.00 (1) | – | £148.00 – £148.00 | 1 | 1 | 30-05-2026 | |
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About the 2019 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Sherlock Holmes
The 2019 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Sherlock Holmes is a circulating 50 pence coin, struck in copper-nickel. It weighs 8g and measures 27.3mm across. Reverse design: Silhouette of Sherlock Holmes smoking a pipe facing left with lists of the novels either side and denomination below.
8,602,000 were struck.
Common questions
How much is the 2019 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Sherlock Holmes worth?
Verified sold prices for the 2019 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Sherlock Holmes run from £1.50 to £148 across 6 grades, taking the median for each grade. Condition makes the difference, so check the grade table above before pricing one.
How many Sherlock Holmes 50p coins were made?
8,602,000 were struck for circulation, according to the Royal Mint's mintage figures. Brilliant Uncirculated, silver proof, silver proof piedfort and gold proof versions were also sold to collectors and are not included in that number.
Is the Sherlock Holmes 50p rare?
No. With 8,602,000 struck for circulation it is a common commemorative. It is about forty times the mintage of the 2009 Kew Gardens 50p, and close to the two 2019 Paddington 50p coins, which stand at 9,001,000 each.
Who designed the Sherlock Holmes 50p?
Stephen Raw designed the reverse, which shows a silhouette of Holmes with pipe and deerstalker surrounded by the titles of his cases. The obverse carries the fifth portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Jody Clark.
Is the tiny writing on the Sherlock Holmes 50p an error?
No. The small lettering is part of the design. Stephen Raw chose to make the story titles small enough to need a magnifying glass, hoping to bring out the inner detective of anyone who found the coin in their change.
Can you still find the Sherlock Holmes 50p in change?
Yes. It was struck for general circulation and, with 8,602,000 made, it is one of the easier commemorative 50p coins to find. A coin from change has ordinary circulation wear, unlike the Brilliant Uncirculated version sold in packs.
How do I identify the 2019 50 Pence - Elizabeth II – Sherlock Holmes?
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 Sherlock Holmes 50p was issued in 2019, when the Royal Mint marked the 160th anniversary of the birth of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Conan Doyle wrote 60 Sherlock Holmes stories, and the coin is dedicated to the detective, not to a portrait of the author.
The Royal Mint's figures give a circulating mintage of 8,602,000. That is a plentiful issue. It is close to the two Paddington 50p coins of the same year, at 9,001,000 each, and about forty times the 210,000 of the 2009 Kew Gardens 50p.
The reverse is by Stephen Raw. It shows the detective's profile in silhouette, complete with pipe and deerstalker, surrounded by the names of his best-known adventures. The proclamation describes it as "a silhouette of Sherlock Holmes surrounded by titles of the books and the inscription SHERLOCK HOLMES and 50 PENCE".
The titles are in very small lettering, and that is deliberate. Raw chose a design that needs a magnifying glass to read the names of the cases, hoping to bring out the "inner detective" of anyone who finds the coin in their change.
The obverse carries the fifth portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Jody Clark, with the inscription ELIZABETH II DEI GRA REG FID DEF and the date 2019. The edge is plain.
Collecting notes
No varieties or mint errors are documented for this coin. The small lettering is the most common cause of confusion: titles that are hard to read, or that have softened with wear, are a feature of the design and of circulation, not a striking fault.
The coin was sold in Brilliant Uncirculated condition from May 2019, and in silver proof, silver proof piedfort and gold proof versions. These share the design. Brilliant Uncirculated coins are struck to a higher standard than coins made for circulation and show more detail.
With 8,602,000 struck, the coin still turns up in change. Coin Hunter rates a circulated example at face value. An example worth keeping is one where the titles around the silhouette are still legible under magnification.
Sources
The history, design, varieties and collecting notes on this page are drawn from these sources. Prices come from recorded sales, not from them.
- Sherlock Holmes 2019 UK 50p Silver Proof Coin, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Proclamation determining the specifications and designs for a new series of fifty pence coins in gold, standard silver, silver piedfort and cupro-nickel, notice 3057944, 29 June 2018, The Gazette (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Fifty Pence Mintage Figures (data file mintages.json), The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- World famous detective Sherlock Holmes to be commemorated on UK coin (Royal Mint announcement), Numismatic News (read 9 Oct 2026)
- UK 2019 Sherlock Holmes 50p, Coin Hunter (read 9 Oct 2026)
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