By Rocco Clayfield, Founder & Director, GoldPaid Ltd · Published 24 August 2026
The two dates that decide the value
- Pre-1920: 92.5 % silver (sterling). The traditional British standard from the Middle Ages until the First World War.
- 1920–1946: 50 % silver alloy (with copper, nickel and manganese). The Coinage Act 1920 halved the silver content to conserve wartime bullion.
- 1947 onward: cupro-nickel. Zero silver. The Coinage Act 1946 ended silver coinage for general circulation entirely.
This is the single most useful thing to know if you are looking at a tin of old change. A 1919 shilling and a 1920 shilling look almost identical to the eye. The 1919 is nearly double the silver.
The denominations that carry silver
| Denomination | Face value (old money) | Standard weight | Diameter | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Threepence (silver) | 3d | 1.41 g | 16.3 mm | Small round. NOT the 12-sided brass threepence (1937 onward) |
| Sixpence | 6d | 2.83 g | 19.4 mm | Silver in every year up to 1946 |
| Shilling | 1s | 5.66 g | 23.6 mm | English and Scottish reverses from 1937 |
| Florin | 2s | 11.31 g | 28.5 mm | Two shillings |
| Halfcrown | 2s 6d | 14.14 g | 32.3 mm | The workhorse silver coin of the era |
| Crown | 5s | 28.28 g | 38.6 mm | Only struck for specific occasions — much scarcer |
What a bag of coins actually contains
Bag-lot scrap silver is priced on fine-silver content. The rough conversions below are what buyers work from — sort your coins by era before weighing, or the mixed figure will be an average of the two.
| Bag content | Approx. fine silver per 100 g of coin | Multiplier |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-1920 mixed silver (any denomination) | ≈ 92.5 g | × 0.925 |
| 1920–1946 mixed silver (any denomination) | ≈ 50 g | × 0.500 |
| Mixed pre-1946 with unknown split | ≈ 65–75 g (assumes both eras) | Sort first |
So a jam jar with 500 g of pre-1920 sixpences and shillings holds roughly 462 g of fine silver. The same jar filled with 1920–1946 coins holds roughly 250 g. Two very different valuations from a jar that weighs the same on your kitchen scales — which is why sorting by date before you send anything makes a material difference to the offer.
Not sure how any of this applies to your own items? Send a photo on WhatsApp and ask. We answer honestly, there is no obligation, and nothing is posted until you decide. Or call 07944 014111, 8am to 9pm, 7 days a week.
The quick sort at your kitchen table
- Empty the tin onto a tray in good light. Ignore anything obviously modern (post-1947 shillings, 5p, 10p — all cupro-nickel).
- Separate the small round threepences from the 12-sided brass ones. Round = silver; 12-sided = not silver.
- Sort the silver into two piles by date: 1919 and earlier vs 1920–1946.
- Weigh each pile on kitchen scales to the nearest gram. Note the gross weight of each pile separately.
- Take clear photographs of any coin that looks unusually sharp, or is a crown (5s), before it joins a bag. See "When a coin deserves a second look" below.
When a coin deserves a second look
A worn 1922 florin is priced on silver. A sharp 1935 Jubilee crown in original condition is a numismatic object — the Rocking Horse crown design is one of the most collected 20th-century British coins and can sit well above its silver value. The same principle applies to any of the following:
- Crowns (5-shilling pieces). Only struck for specific years and occasions. Even circulated examples usually beat their silver value.
- Sharp uncirculated coins. Full detail on the portrait, no wear on the high points, mirror or lustre in the fields. If it looks brand new, it probably is worth grading.
- Coins in original Royal Mint packaging. Proof sets, specimen coinage, Maundy sets — never break them up.
- Any early Victorian or Georgian silver (pre-1837). Older and often scarcer.
- Anything unusually thick, thin, or with a die error. Off-metal strikes and errors carry a premium.
For anything in those categories, a British Numismatic Trade Association (BNTA) dealer or a specialist coin auction house (Baldwin's, Spink, Noonan's) is the right first stop. Metal-price scrap buyers, ourselves included, are the wrong first stop for a coin that may carry a numismatic premium.
What the volunteer's guide covers instead
If you are sorting silver on behalf of a charity shop or warehouse rather than for yourself, the working aid for volunteers is the pre-1947 silver coins charity shop guide. It covers triage speed, mixed-pile handling and audit-trail practice for a donation pipeline — different priorities from the private-seller decisions in this post.
Sending pre-1947 silver to GoldPaid
We accept pre-1947 British silver coins for their silver content. Every parcel is opened on camera, weighed on calibrated scales and assayed by in-house XRF — coins are checked as coins, not averaged into a scrap figure. You get a written itemised offer with the weight, the era split, and the per-gram rate. Faster Payments within one working hour of acceptance. Decline and everything is returned tracked and free.
One point worth stating plainly: if we spot a coin we think deserves a numismatist rather than a scrap buyer, we say so on the offer sheet. A 1935 crown in your parcel comes back with a note, not folded into a bag price. For the full procedure see how we value gold (the same method applies to silver).
Common questions
Are all pre-1947 British coins silver?
Only the silver denominations — threepence (round, not 12-sided), sixpence, shilling, florin, halfcrown and crown. Pennies, halfpennies and farthings from the same era are copper or bronze and hold no silver.
How do I tell if a threepence is silver?
Shape. A silver threepence is small, thin and round. A 12-sided (dodecagonal) threepence is nickel-brass and contains no silver. The 12-sided coin was introduced in 1937 and ran alongside the silver round threepence until the silver version was phased out.
Is a 1946 shilling silver?
Yes — 50 % silver alloy. 1946 was the last year of silver coinage. From 1947 onward, shillings were cupro-nickel.
How much silver is in a pre-1920 halfcrown?
92.5 % of 14.14 g = approximately 13.08 g of fine silver.
How much silver is in a 1920–1946 halfcrown?
50 % of 14.14 g = approximately 7.07 g of fine silver — roughly half the pre-1920 figure.
Should I clean old silver coins before selling?
No. Cleaning removes surface detail and toning, and it destroys the numismatic value of any coin that might have carried a premium. If a coin is going for scrap the buyer does not care about tarnish. If it is going to a numismatist, cleaning it first can cost you real money.
What is the "Rocking Horse" crown?
The 1935 George V Silver Jubilee crown, designed by Percy Metcalfe, showing a modernist Saint George on a rearing horse. Even circulated examples usually carry a numismatic premium over silver value.
Does GoldPaid buy old silver coins?
Yes — pre-1947 British silver by content, sorted by era. We assay each parcel by XRF, weigh on calibrated scales, and issue a written itemised offer. Faster Payments within one working hour of acceptance; free tracked return if you decline.