StuDudley

I have a "purse" of British coins that I've been dumping money into for about 40+ years. I'm not sure that all of these coins are currently legal tender. I seem to recall that the UK "retired" some coins a few decades ago. Here is what I have:
- Shillings - some are dated 1949
- New Pence
- Pence

What is the difference in these coins? What is still usable??

I also have one pound coins - but I can figure out what these are.

Stu Dudley

ribeirasacra

Shillings no longer legal tender:
New pence is the same as Pence the "new" was dropped some time ago. Designs change over time.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_coinage
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny_%...ecimal_coin%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_pen...ecimal_coin%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_pe...ecimal_coin%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ten_pen...ecimal_coin%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_twenty_pence_coin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifty_p...ecimal_coin%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_one_pound_coin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_two_pound_coin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_five_pound_coin

flanneruk

1. You don't mean "legal tender".
2. Post-1971 coins can be used anywhere. Pre 1982 they were denominated as "new pence": post 1982 as "pence": they are all based on pence that are 1% of a pound
3. Pre-1971 coins (ultimately based on pence that are 1/240 of a pound, and usually called pre-decimal) are demonetised and can't be used in shops. Some have collector value. You can't get them redeemed at a bank for new money (unlike banknotes, they don't carry an infinite guarantee), but google for specialist buyers. A shilling was worth 5p, or 12d.

Kate

This link: http://www.sparklebox.co.uk/thumbs47...l#.TmUIGuaf89A

allows you to download a pdf of all the currently legal coins, showing them at actual size.

In descending order, the coins are:
£2
£1
50 pence
20 pence
10 pence
5 pence
2 pence
1 pence.

The design on the tail side does change occasionally, so don't worry if, for instance, you have pound coins that have a different design on the tail from the ones shown.

The main thing to look for in your random collection are the 10p and 5p coins, as these have changed in size over the years (they've got smaller), so if you have any of the old-sized ones, they won't be legal tender. Discard anything with 'shilling' written on it. And 1/2 pence coins are no longer in circulation.