I had this posted in the general chat room and got a few comments. I have recently found a 1943 steel penny. I know it is not rare or has a high value. When I discovered it, it was badly rusted to a degree that you would not have known it was a penny. I decided to clean it, and I know that is looked down upon. After cleaning, I noticed a marking where the mint mark is located. Under magnification it appeared to be a "P". I compared it to a 1943 "D" and the mint mark placement doesn't line up. Plus, this coin appears to have been stamped (mark is imbeded and not raised like the numbers on the date). Has anyone seen anything like this before? Here are a few pics. Thank you for any feedback.
Snapper - First of all what you did to that coin is not looked down upon. The reason it is not looked down upon is because that is exactly what you should do to prevent further damage from being done to the coin. In other words there are times when taking action is better than taking no action. There are times when cleaning a coin, even harshly cleaning a coin, is the right thing to do. But that is only the case when such action will prevent further, and worse damage. Secondly, back then cents were not minted with P mint marks. I suspect what you are seeing is either a mark left on the coin by the corrosion or a contact mark of some kind. I suspect it is not a mint mark at all.
