British coin collectors are on high alert for a particular £2 coin from 2011, which is currently fetching hefty sums on the collectors’ market.
Astonishingly, this unique piece has been snapped up for around £270, but some hopeful sellers have set their sights higher, asking for over £1,000 online.
The sought-after coin bears the charming image of Tosha the Cat, who was proudly chosen as the fourth official Commonwealth Youth Games Mascot. It was commissioned by Pobjoy Mint on behalf of the Isle of Man Treasury, the Mirror reports.
The Tosha the Cat £2 coin significantly grew in collector acclaim in 2018, when it was dubbed the “coin of the year” by numerous coin enthusiasts on social media platforms. But the question remains: what elevates this £2 coin above the rest in terms of value?
Change Checker experts weigh in on the matter: “Whilst rarity is normally a large factor in how collectable a coin is, mintage figures for British Isles coins are notoriously hard to track down and this coin is no exception. No one actually knows the true mintage figure, so it can’t be said how rare the coin is, although we do know that British Isles coins typically have lower mintages than UK coins due to the smaller population.
“One thing we do know for certain is that the Isle of Man Tosha Cat £2 is definitely sought-after amongst collectors. Although the Tosha Cat £2 was issued in 2011, it wasn’t until it was posted on Facebook coin groups in 2018 that the price started skyrocketing on the secondary market.
“In fact, in 2018 this coin became ‘Coin of the Year’ on Facebook coin groups, and this is where it really found its success. Following the Facebook hype surrounding the Tosha £2, eBay bidding wars began. At a time when the Kew Gardens was selling for around £80 on eBay, this coin was regularly selling for double that.”
Listings for this Isle of Man coin on eBay are regularly surpassing £100 and even reaching into the thousands. In a recent TikTok video, expert Coin Collector UK revealed the coin’s value to be approximately £270.
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