The Kew Gardens coin was minted to mark the institution’s 250th anniversary (Photo: Getty Images) What are the rarest 50p coins in circulation? It adds: “Demand for the 50p denomination was not high at the time of release into circulation which explains the low mintage of this particular design.”Īccording to Matt Curtis, The Royal Mint’s Historics and Collector Services Expert: “As the mintage numbers were so low, many collectors removed the coins from circulation when found.”Ī new version of the Kew Gardens 50p was issued in 2019, as part of a special British Culture Set marking 50 years of the 50p coin. Just 210,000 were released into circulation and with almost all of them in private hands, the chances of coming across one in your change are slim.” “Nothing gets people excited quite like this original 2009 design.