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Cent (United States coin)

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The United States one-cent coin is a unit of currency equaling one-hundredth of a United States dollar. Its symbol is: ยข. Its obverse has featured the profile of President Abraham Lincoln since 1909, the centennial of his birth. Since 1959 (the sesquicentennial of Lincoln's birth), the reverse has featured the Lincoln Memorial. The coin is .75 inches (19.05 mm) in diameter and .061 inches (1.55 mm) in thickness.

The one-cent coin is often called a penny, but the U.S. Mint's official name for this coin is cent.

History of composition

Years Material
1793–1837 copper
1837–1857 bronze (95% copper, 5% tin and zinc)
1857–1864 87.5% copper, 12.5% nickel (also known as NS-12)
1864–1942 bronze (95% copper, 5% tin and zinc)
1943 zinc-coated steel
1944–1946 brass (95% copper, 5% zinc)
1946–1962 bronze (95% copper, 5% tin and zinc)
1962–1982 brass (95% copper, 5% zinc)
1982– present 97.5% zinc core, 2.5% copper plating
In 1943, at the peak of World War II, cents of zinc-coated steel were made for a short time due to war demands for copper. A few copper cents from 1943 were produced from the 1942 planchets remaining in the bins. Similarly, some 1944 steel cents have been confirmed. From 1944 through 1946, salvaged ammunition shells made their way into the minting process, and it was not uncommon to see coins featuring streaks of brass or having a considerably darker finish than other issues.

During the early 1970s, the price of copper rose to a point where the cent almost contained more than one cent's worth of copper. This led the Mint to test alternate metals, including aluminum and bronze-clad steel. Aluminum was chosen, and over 1.5 million of these cents were struck and ready for public release before ultimately being rejected. About a dozen aluminum cents are believed to still be in the hands of collectors, although they are now considered illegal, and are subject to seizure by the Secret Service. One aluminum cent was donated to the Smithsonian Institution.

The cent's composition was changed in 1982 because the value of the copper in the coin started to rise above one cent. Some 1982 cents use the 97.5% zinc composition, while others used the 95% copper composition. The price of copper later returned to profitable levels.

Many people can hear the difference between the bronze and copper cents and the newer, zinc cents: simply flip the coin, giving it a good, solid strike. The predominantly copper pennies produce a ringing sound in the 12 kHz range. The zinc coins do not ring.

Designs

The coin has gone through several designs over its two-hundred year history. Until 1857 it was about the size of the current half-dollar coin.

The following types of cents have been produced:

Large Cents:

Small Cents:

Throughout its history, the Lincoln cent has featured several fonts for the date, but most of the digits have been old-style numerals, except with the 4 and 8 neither ascending nor descending. The only significant divergence is that the 3 was non-descending (the same size as a 0, 1, or 2) in the early history, before switching to descending for one year in 1934 and then permanently (as of 2004) in 1943.

The Lincoln Memorial is shown on the reverse of the United States cent. In his treatise Theory and Practise of Numismatic Design, Steve Crooks states that because the Lincoln Memorial is shown in sufficient detail to discern the statue of Lincoln on the reverse of the cent, Abraham Lincoln was the only person to be depicted on both the obverse and reverse of the same United States coin, up until the release of New Jersey state quarter in 1999, which depicts George Washington crossing the Delaware River on the reverse side.

Redesign

In 2009 the cent will get a one-year, four-coin commemorative program marking the 100th anniversary of Lincoln being placed on the cent, and the 200th anniversary of his birth. Thus, 2008 will be the 49th anniversary, and last year that the Lincoln Memorial will be on the U.S penny. This redesign was passed as part of the Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005, which also mandates that in 2009, numismatic cents will be issued for collectors that have the metallic copper content of cents minted in 1909. In 2010, the cent will be completely redesigned, with a new, permanent design being released into circulation. The redesign should show Lincoln's preservation of the country in the Civil War. Lincoln, however, will remain on the coin. The composition for circulating issues will be copper-plated zinc.

Numismatics

Various commentators have suggested that the cent should be eliminated as a unit of currency for several reasons including that many Americans do not actually spend them, but rather only receive them in change at stores and proceed to return them to a bank for higher denomination currencies. Most modern vending machines do not accept cents, further diminishing their utility, and the production cost now exceeds the face value of the coin due to increasing metal prices. In 2001 and 2006, for example, United States Representative Jim Kolbe (R) of Arizona introduced bills which would have stopped production of cents (in 2001 the Legal Tender Modernization Act, and in 2006 the Currency Overhaul for an Industrious Nation (COIN) Act).

As of February 22, 2008, the price of copper is $3.7741 per pound and zinc is $1.1188 per pound. At these prices, the pre-1982 copper cent contains 2.49 US cents which makes them an attractive target for melting by people wanting to sell the metal at a profit. However, the United States Mint, in anticipation of this practice, implemented new regulations on December 14, 2006 which criminalize the melting of cents and nickels and place limits on export of the coins. Violators can be punished with a fine of up to 10 000 USD and/or imprisoned for a maximum of five years.

In February 2008, the copper-plated zinc cent contains 0.6 cents worth of metal.

See also

References

External links



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Last updated on Thursday March 13, 2008 at 09:56:48 PDT (GMT -0700)
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