We thought it would be useful to revisit the values of Australian 50 cent coins that you might find in your change. The values below are drawn from the 2012 edition of the Pocket Guide to Australian Coins and Banknotes written by Greg McDonald. Remember these prices are for true uncirculated coins and they are what you can expect to PAY for a coin rather than what you can sell it for. If you're selling these coins you'll be lucky to get half the catalogue value and likely much less.

• 1970 Captain Cook Bicentenary, mintage: 16,548,100, $7.00
• 1977 Silver Jubilee, mintage: 25,067,000, $4.00
• 1981 Royal Wedding, mintage: 20,000,000, $6.00
• 1982 Commonwealth Games, mintage: 23,287,000, $4.00
• 1988 First Fleet Bicentenary, mintage: 8,990,800, $15.00
• 1991 Decimal Anniversary, mintage: 4,704,400, $10.00
• 1994 Year of the Family (narrow date), mintage: 20,830,800, $12.00
• 1994 Year of the Family (wide date), mintage: 20,830,800, $12.00
• 1995 Weary Dunlop, mintage: 15,869,200, $7.00
• 1998 Bass and Flinders, mintage: 22,426,000, $7.00
• 2000 Year 2000 Millennium, mintage: 16,630,000, $7.00

Now if you compare the catalogue values of these coins in 2012 with those in the table we wrote in 2009 you will note that not one of these coins has changed in catalogue value in 3 years. Not exactly the stuff investment dreams are made of.

Because it will be interesting to look back on this article in a few years time we thought we'd take a look at the catalogue values of some of the commemorative 50c coins we didn't consider last time. As above these values are for true uncirculated coins only.

• 2001 Centenary of Federation, mintage: 43,149,600, $5.00
• 2001 Centenary of Federation NSW, mintage: 3,042,000, $6.00
• 2001 Centenary of Federation ACT, mintage: 2,000,000, $6.00
• 2001 Centenary of Federation QLD, mintage: 2,320,000, $6.00
• 2001 Centenary of Federation VIC, mintage: 2,000,000, $6.00
• 2001 Centenary of Federation Norfolk Island, mintage: 2,000,000, $6.00
• 2001 Centenary of Federation NT, mintage: 2,000,000, $6.00
• 2001 Centenary of Federation WA, mintage: 2,400,000, $6.00
• 2001 Centenary of Federation SA, mintage: 2,400,000, $6.00
• 2001 Centenary of Federation TAS, mintage: 2,106,006, $6.00
• 2002 Year of the Outback, mintage: 11,507,000, $6.00
• 2003 Australia's Volunteers, mintage: 13,927,000, $4.00
• 2004 Student Design, mintage: 10,200,000, $3.00
• 2005 60th Anniversary of WW2, mintage: 20,719,000, $3.00

If you're wondering why we've got this far and haven't mentioned the 1966 Round 50c Coin you should remember that it trades mainly as silver bullion rather than as a collectable coin. Back in 2009 when we wrote the original 50 cent coin value article silver was trading at about $19.50 an ounce making a round 50c worth about $6.50. Today that same round 50c contains $9.60 worth of silver. Seems like an excellent return? Well it is, but a word of caution, remember that in 1980 at the height of the Hunt Brothers silver run a round 50c contained $15 worth of silver. So if you'd held onto them for the intervening 32 years you'd have made a 50% loss, which is even worse if you consider 32 years of inflation!

The 70th anniversary of the Kokoda campaign is marked by this special issue 50c released by the Royal Australian Mint. The Kokoda trail is a 96km single file trail overland through Papua New Guinea. It was the scene of many violent conflicts throughout 1942 between Australian armed forces and the Japanese army. The Japanese sought to capture Port Moresby as part of the Pacific War in World War II which saw Australia's security directly threatened. This was in addition to the bombing of Australia's shores by Japanese forces.

In the Kokoda conflict the Japanese sought to advance south through the Owen Stanley Range to seize Port Moresby in an attempt to isolate Australia from the USA. During one particular battle along the Kokoda, Private Bruce Kingsbury earned a Victoria Cross during the Battle of Isurava. He courageously charged the Japanese, buying his comrades time to reinforce their positions allowing them to resist further Japanese attacks. For his ultimate personal sacrifice he was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross Medal, the highest award for bravery given to British and Commonwealth soldiers.

The Isurava memorial is the design depicted on this commemorative 50c and was the site of some of the most intense fighting in the Kokoda campaign and is also adjacent to the site where Private Kingsbury performed his act of valour. This memorial was constructed in 2002. It features four Australian black granite pillars with the inscriptions courage, endurance, mateship and sacrifice. An inscription at the site reads

"The four sentinel stones represent the resolute commitment and sacrifice of those Australian soldiers who stood firm to slow and to finally halt the advance of the Japanese forces across Papua New Guinea in 1942."

As well as showing the Isurava Memorial the reverse of the coin also shows the the Owen Stanley Range in the background and the stars of the Southern Cross. The design was sculpted by Wojciech Pietranik. The coin is the standard dodecagonal cupro-nickel 50c shape and composition but has been issued as a collector item and is not intended for circulation. It has been released in a credit card sized collector card for $9. It is struck in uncirculated quality and is housed in a capsule. The obverse is the standard portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Ian Rank-Broadley.

Die clash occurs when the dies strike together when a blank is not loaded in the press and one die damages the opposing die. This damage to the die face appears as outlines of the opposing sides design appearing on the die. The coins then struck will have elements of the design of the opposing side appearing with it's own design.

We see here a superb gem uncirculated Australian sixpence from 1963 recently removed from a mint roll. It's spectacular because the reverse features a clear outline of Elizabeth II around the shield between the kangaroo and the emu. It's a mirror image of the outline of the portrait design seen on the obverse. In a heavier die clash, the clashed design will appear "stepped" with a clear difference in height on the coin surface.

Melbourne motorists heading home from work last night got a surprising shower. It wasn't rain or hail or rocks from roadworks but $50 and $100 notes! The falling cash dubbed a "shower of confetti" to the tune of $22,000 spilled near the Calder Freeway in the city's north east and as yet none of the money has been turned into police. One passer by collected $8,400 and another $12,000 suggesting "the bottom ends fallen out of an armed car". It is believed to have been stolen from a local business and police are investigating. Police urge those who may have pocketed the windfall that it is a criminal offense to possess stolen property.

The Sumatran Tiger dollar is released by the Royal Australian Mint as part of the Animals of the Zoo series. The series features 6 coins all depicting rare and endangered animals residing at the zoo, this coin is in the second release. The series celebrates the 150th anniversary of the Melbourne Zoo, Australia's oldest zoo. The Melbourne Zoo is home to five of these critically endangered species that grow 20 times larger than the household cat! They are native to the Indonesian Island of Sumatra.

The Animals of the Zoo series follows on from the very popular Ocean, Land and Air series released by the Mint in previous years. These 25mm dollar coins have a frosted uncirculated finish, this one with a sculpted tiger design which is then overlaid with colour in the pad-printing process. The design is by the RAM's Aaron Baggio. This 2012 dated one dollar weighs 9 grams and is minted on an aluminium bronze burnished blank planchet. The obverse features the standard Ian Rank-Broadley portrait of Queen Elizabeth II.

Issued in a capsule snapped into a collector card for $15, for up to date mintage figures see the 2012 One Dollar Issues and Mintages Table.

The Royal Australian Mints' Animals of the Zoo coloured one dollar series coincides with the 150th anniversary of the Melbourne Zoo, the oldest Australian zoo. The coin depicted above is in the second release of this series showing off the southern corroboree frog. The Melbourne Zoo is home to over 100 of these critically endangered species of frog, just 10% of the entire population known to exist and in decline. They are usually seen inhabiting alpine sphagnum bogs and marshlands in the Kosciusko National Park. Their vibrant yellow and black stripes make them eye catching indeed.

This dollar is one of six coins issued in 2012 in the Animals of the Zoo series which follows on from the very popular Ocean, Land and Air series released by the Mint in previous years. The 25mm dollar coins have a frosted uncirculated finish, this one with a sculpted frog design which is then overlaid with colour in the pad-printing process. The design is by the RAM's Aaron Baggio. This 2012 dated one dollar weighs 9 grams and is minted on an aluminium bronze burnished blank planchet. The obverse features the standard Ian Rank-Broadley portrait of Queen Elizabeth II.

Issued in a capsule snapped into a collector card for $15, for up to date mintage figures see the 2012 One Dollar Issues and Mintages Table.

Reminding Australia of previous war times when our own shores were under attack from Japanese forces 70 years ago this coin is the Bombing of Australia Impact Zones 50c and is included in the 3 coin set "Shores Under Siege" released by the Royal Australian Mint. It was not available to purchase separately. The design features a map of Australia illustrating the major points of attack on Australian shores. This coin marries with two commemorative 20c released in this 3 coin set.

This 50c reverse is designed by the RAM's Wojciech Pietranik and features his tiny initials below the 1 of 1942. The obverse features the Ian Rank-Broadley effigy of QEII.

Remembering 70 years since the start of Japanese air raid attacks on Australia at the beginning of World War II these two 20c coins are part of a 3 coin set released by the Royal Australian Mint titled "Shores Under Seige". Remembering these events reminds us the value of peace and our nations ability to rally together in times of need.

It was 19th February 1942 that Darwin first came under attack from the Japanese bombers destroying parts of the town, harbour, military and civil aerodromes, a hospital and the air force base. These attacks continued until November 1943 and by then Australia had been targeted over 100 times.

The top coin imaged depicts civilians awaiting entry to an air raid shelter whilst the second coin depicts the silhouette of a lone sentry keeping watch of our shores on a gun turret . Both these images have been sculpted to coin by ram designer Aaron Baggio. Both are 20c denomination of the standard size, weight and composition but have been minted for the collector market (NCLT) and have not been issued into circulation. The coins feature the Ian Rank-Broadley portrait of Queen Elizabeth II.

The third coin in this 3 coin set is a commemorative 50c.

The second Currency Determination for 2012 for the Royal Australian Mint has been published today giving us insight into (proposed) new designs in the making at the RAM. You can read the determination on the Comlaw website. Of Interest is the 2013 issues with a new design by Wojciech Pietranik.

"A stylised representation of a diamond shaped road sign, including a representation of a kangaroo. The design includes a stylised representation of the Southern Cross in the upper right sector (partially covered by the road sign) and a line drawing of an octagon in the background."

No doubt the silver proof dollar will be on my purchase list but sadly I'll pass on the $3,000 denomination 1kg gold version. At today's gold price, just bullion value alone would see that coin at $51,666! I wonder if such a new kangaroo design would mimic the success of his stunning kangaroo at sunset design.