With the release of the first 50ps with the King's image, many of us will be going through our change to see if we have history in our pockets.

Some may have coins from early in the Queen's reign and others may strike gold with commemorative designs.

Here's a look at the rarest 50p coins in circulation, according to the Royal Mint.

What makes a coin valuable?

The 50 pence piece has become the most valued and collected coin in the UK.

It is the largest British coin which allows space for decorative pictures, having celebrated over 70 events, anniversaries and individuals.

The rarest coins tend to be of the greatest value, with a low mintage (number of coins with each design made) attracting collectors.

The decimal system we use today has only been in place since 1971 with its 50th anniversary last year, 2021.

In 2019, the Royal Mint rereleased some of its rarest and most popular 50ps for the anniversary.

The rarest 50p coins in UK circulation

The rarest coin was made to mark Kew Garden's 250th anniversary in 2009. Only 210,000 coins were minted and it has been sold for up to £900 online.

Also rare are those that were minted in 2011 for the 2012 Olympics to celebrate each sport, including football, wrestling, judo, triathlon, tennis, goalball and shooting. A total of nine million were minted.

Among the highly coveted is the Peter Rabbit collection from 2018 which depicts characters from Beatrix Potter's novels - with Peter Rabbit and Flopsy Bunny among the rarest. Just 2.8 million were minted for the pair.

In 2019, three new designs were released including a Sherlock Holmes coin, Paddington at the Tower of London and Paddington at St Paul's. Each had a minting of around nine million.