I'm a metal detecting hobbyist. My usual routine is to sort the pennies I find, tumble them, and then sort again into zinc and copper. My intention is to simply save the coppers for some future disposition, without any real idea of what that “disposition” is (I inspect the coppers for date only, just as a matter of interest). The zincs I throw into a container and save with the intention of attempting to turn them into the treasury for replacement with undamaged currency (all my zincs come out of the tumbler with some degree of damage. Most are already corroded and damage. Those that are not already damaged suffer some level of copper plating removal…who cares…they’re “stickin’ zicons”). So, I was surprised to discover the coin pictured here when sorting after cleaning. It looks like a rather significant minting error. I don’t know as I’m not really a coin collector. Maybe there are lots of these in circulation. However, I have probably destroyed some level (big time) of its value by cleaning it and exposing the zinc, if it was valuable. Can anyone comment on this coin? The coin had already suffered some damage when I found it as can be seen at the edges of the coin. It's a 1971, D.
It looks like post mint damage to me. Someone either soldered or glued those segments to the coin, but for what reason, I don't know. If you know anything about the minting process, you would realize that a Mint error like this is highly unlikely. Chris
It looks like post mint damage to me. Someone either soldered or glued those segments to the coin, but for what reason, I don't know. If you know anything about the minting process, you would realize that a Mint error like this is highly unlikely. Chris I'd agree with you. But the anomaly is copper plated. It was on the coin when it received it's plating.
What tells me is that it's post mint damage is that there are no die marks or impressions on the "tabs". All the coin detail is under the tabs.
Right! What am I thinking. But why then is there a silvery color showing through the copper after cleaning? Look closely at the photos. The mystery deepens.
It's post mint damage! Ask Billy Crawford. He knows more about the Lincoln cent than anyone else I know.
Right! What am I thinking? But why did a silvery color show through after cleaning? Do you suppose that it is a fake 1971 coin made as a piece of jewlery?
Why would someone fake a 1971-D penny?............. The only way for this to happen at the mint is a planchet error. If it were a planchet error, there would be markings on the two "tabs" from the die. Post mint damage/alteration plain and simple. As to the "silver" color: it could be any one of a hundred different things, including heat & metal damage from welding those tabs onto it
Here's my guess. Someone soldered small pieces of copper wire on a 1971, D penny for some unknown reason. I saw the solder on the coin when sorting out the zinc and copper after cleaning (I don't look at the dates, because the difference between copper and zinc is so obvious after cleaning), and assumed it was copper plated zinc with the zinc showing throuth after cleaning. What I thought was zinc was solder. Mystery solved. :smile
:smile Yes indeed..an invention for new tool for opening and closing the back of the small watch to replace the old batteries.This is also the way i think on that penny. it is also look he/she destroy a lot of valuable pennies may be a plain 1922 or 1909 s VDB that he does not know....urghh...ouch..:smile
If you're talking about the silvery color substance where those tabs are, it's solder. Those were added by someone, no doubt as an exonumia piece. It's PMD.
