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Lincoln's birthday!
- 1809: Lincoln born
- 1909: Mint unveils Lincoln wheat penny
- 1959: memorial penny
- 2009: bicentennial penny series
- 2059: struggling to compete with VR coin collecting, Mint unveils separate penny design for every American at net loss of $5/coin, probably
- 1809: Lincoln born
- 1909: Mint unveils Lincoln wheat penny
- 1959: memorial penny
- 2009: bicentennial penny series
- 2059: struggling to compete with VR coin collecting, Mint unveils separate penny design for every American at net loss of $5/coin, probably
Important penny facts! In 1909, the social energy that would one day go into hunting Bad Tweets instead went to being mad at the US Mint that new penny's designer, Victor David Brenner, had immodestly placed his initials in conspicuous view on the back of the penny -- V.D.B.:
The Mint quickly pulled the design from circulation, moving the VDB initials to a tiny spot on the ridge where Lincoln's shoulder slopes into the plane of the coin:
In 1943, Lincoln pennies were made of steel, to spare copper for shelling Germany and Japan. These are the only coins minted in US history that are attracted by magnets. From 1944-1946 (according to many sources), pennies were made in part from melted shell casings.
The penny is now minted at a loss of nearly 1¢. People have been trying & failing to kill it since the 70s. To date, the Mint has made 520 billion of this coin, whose purposelessness is commensurate with collectors' obsession with its arcana. It will surely outlast the cockroach.
Anyway, um, happy birthday to Abraham Lincoln.
