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The ‘holy grail’ two-up coin that could be worth more than $1 million

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If you pulled out an Australian penny to play two-up on Tuesday, take another look at the tails side of your coin — if it was minted in 1930 it could be worth an eye-watering $50,000.

And the rarest of the 1930 pennies, known as Proof Pennies due to their high quality and of which only six were made, are worth a whopping $1 million.

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Of those super rare pennies, three are held in the Museum of Victoria, the Art Gallery of South Australia, and the British Museum, and the other three are known to be privately owned, according to the Perth Mint.

It reports an Australian purchased one of those Proof Pennies for $1.15 million, easily making it the nation’s most valuable coin.

“It is the holy grail,” Perth TikTok numismatist Joel Kandiah said.

But Kandiah noted that even regular 1930 Australian pennies are still worth a small fortune.

“Only 3000 were made, and they were only released through the Mint through the visitor program and not in circulation,” Kandiah said.

“There’s no records, believe it or not, but the estimates are between 1500 to 3000 (coins made),” he wrote.

“Most regular 1930 pennies in the market are going for about $50,000.”

Perth TikToker and numismatist Joel Kandiah said a regular 1930 penny usually sells for $50,000, and the rarest variety for $1m. Credit: TikTok @theHistoryofmoney

While some of the regular 1930 pennies could still be awaiting discovery, their rarity and value has been known since the 1940s.

Kandiah commented on his TikTok post, clarifying that “there are plenty of fakes out there”, and any 1930 pennies selling for $10 or so on the internet likely fell into that category.

The value of the coin is otherwise dependent on its condition, according to the Perth Mint.

Kandiah’s post prompted netizens to reminisce, check their coin collections — and that of their grandparents — and query how much their own antique pennies were worth.

“I have (a) 1922 (penny), is that rare?” one person wrote.

“I need to search the house. As a kid, I remember my late father having the same,” another wrote.

“My grandfather had one. He went to the races, and he didn’t leave money for (Grandma) to put in the gas box. She was cross, so she used his 1930 penny!” another wrote.

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