Silver Coins of Britain

One thing I find confusing a lot of people who are new to coin collecting is the subject of Silver Coins. I thought a good idea would be to post a very brief outline of what makes a 'Silver Coin' (British coins at least).

There are a few points to make:

1. No circulation coins produced after 1946 are made of silver at all.
2. From very early (12th century) until 1920, the silver coins were struck in sterling silver (92.5% Ag). The remainder was copper.
3. From 1920 until the removal of silver completely, the 'silver coins' were composed of 50% silver. If you have ever wondered why these coins tended to tarnish slightly brown it is due to the addition of manganese at this time.

Modern 'silver' circulation issue coins ie. 5p, 10p, 20p, 50p AND even £5 coins are made of an alloy (cupro-nickel) which contains no silver at all.

There are still silver coins produced in Britain but most of these are intended from their creation for collectors.  Proof sets are generally made from sterling (92.5%) silver.

Of course, there is the silver Britannia coin (pictured to the right here) which as of 2013 is produced with very fine silver indeed (99.9% Ag) which at 1 troy Oz and today's silver prices is quite a valuable Bullion coin!