Before you toss your old pennies in the coin jar, take a closer look at them. They could be worth thousands of dollars to avid coin collectors.
Wheat pennies, which depict an image of Abraham Lincoln on one side and two stalks of wheat on the other, were minted from 1909 until 1958. According to CoinCollecting.com, the cent was 95% copper until copper was needed for war in 1943 and the penny’s composition changed to zinc-coated steel for the year. A few errors were made on the steel coins, making them rare and valuable pennies.
Another rare penny is the “double die” penny. In January, a 1958 double die penny sold for a record $1.136 million through an auction held by GreatCollections Coin Auctions, the fastest-growing coin and paper money auction house in the U.S, reported Fox Business. Double die pennies are coins that have been struck twice by a metal die during the minting process.
Blake Alma, a coin collector and founder of the coin-collecting blog CoinHub in Lebanon, Ohio, told Fox News Digital that doubled die pennies can have doubled artwork and text that are a “minor deviation” or a “major structural anomaly.” Fox Business pointed out that many of these double die pennies are listed in the high $1,000 and $2,000 range on sites like eBay.
Finding these rare coins is usually left up to chance, Alma explained. He advises keeping a close eye on your coins to increase your odds of finding something rare.
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A penny’s worth depends on its quality and rarity, CNBC Worth It added. The 1943 bronzed Lincoln penny is described as “the most famous error coin in American numismatics,” CNBC Make It pointed out, and the odds of finding one are not in your favor. One that’s been circulated could sell for $150,000 to $200,000, but prices can fluctuate significantly.
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