By Charles Morgan for CoinWeek …..
A month has passed since I last wrote about the coins I received in change, and it’s been just as long since I paid for something in cash to received more. It was just over a decade ago when I cashed out a large jug of coins at a CoinStar machine and received a voucher for $400. At this rate, it will take the rest of my life to save up enough small change to fill rolls.
Fortunately, this past week I purchased something with cash and received 89¢ in change. The cashier had to open a quarter roll to pay out, which made the already long process even longer, but quickly dispensed with my 89¢ in the most direct way possible: three quarters, a dime, and four cents.
What can we learn about these coins, and are any of them collectible?
1968-D Washington Quarter
Condition: Fine Details | Collectibility in This Grade: Low
One of the first observations I made about quarters when I began collecting in 1985 was that you didn’t find quarters dated earlier than 1965 in circulation. I was nine years old at the time and had not yet learned that pre-1965 quarters were struck in 90% silver and were removed from circulation when the switch was made to copper-nickel clad.
In the years since, I’ve probably received no more than 10 silver quarters in change, and not one since the early 2000s.
The period immediately following the passage of the Coinage Act of 1965, which authorized this change in composition, was of great interest to numismatists. Leadership at the United States Mint had become leery of coin collectors, even blaming them for the coin shortage of the early 1960s. One of the anti-collector countermeasures the Mint undertook was the removal of mintmarks on all coins dated 1965, ’66, and ’67. Mintmarks denote the location where a coin was struck. In 1968, to some fanfare, the Mint reintroduced mintmarks, which is why we know that this 1968-D Washington Quarter was struck at the Denver Mint.
By the mid-1980s, most ’65-’68 quarters in circulation showed heavy wear and usually came with a dull grey appearance. This example is borderline Fine to Very Fine but is quite dirty. Hardly a coin one would keep, despite its age.
A 1968-D Washington Quarter in Mint State is worth about $2. This example is only worth 25¢.
2003-P Alabama State Quarter
Condition: About Uncirculated | Collectibility in This Grade: Low
The 50 State Quarters Program reinvigorated the coin-collecting hobby as the public eagerly awaited the release of each new design. Starting in 1999 with the Delaware Quarter, the United States Mint released five designs per year, honoring each state in the order of their admission into the Union.
Artistically, the 50 State Quarters were hit-and-miss. Some designs stood out, like the Vermont and Kentucky Quarters, while others more closely resembled Clip Art than professional work. I’d put the 2003 Alabama State Quarter in the Clip Art category as it shows a stiffly posed Helen Keller reading a book that has been printed in Braille, while generic vegetal wreath segments frame the image.
Other than Ron Guth, who listed this coin as the #2 in his 100 Greatest Women on Coins book, I can think of no other numismatic writer singing the praises of this design. The ridiculous modifications to John Flanagan’s effigy of George Washington that were undertaken starting in the mid-1990s didn’t help matters.
The example I got in my change was struck with dies in mid-to-late die state, as evidenced by the granular surfaces at and around Washington’s neck. Twenty-two years of circulation are apparent as the coin grades a solid AU50. On a good day, this coin would sell for about $1 in Mint State. In the present grade, it’s worth 25¢.
2022-P Nina Otero-Warren American Women Quarter
Condition: About Uncirculated | Collectibility in This Grade: Low
I did not support the push to place Laura Gardin Fraser’s rejected Washington design on the quarter when it was announced. I felt that, for too long, the Mint has focused on the artwork of the early 20th century when it could better serve the country by allowing talented artists to design coins that reflect the virtues of the country and its people today. I also believed that modern minting practices would not faithfully render Fraser’s design. On this point, I believe I’ve been proven partially true. However, what I missed was the fact that the American Women Quarters have been the most interesting coins issued by the United States Mint since the classic commemorative coin era of 1892-1954. While this isn’t the first series of coins to honor American women–that honor goes to the First Spouse gold coin series–it is the first to honor American women on the basis of their achievements and not their marital status.
The design here shows only a hint of wear, but most of the luster that is apparent on a freshly struck coin has been muted or lost. While this coin is worth only face value, I don’t have a complete set of this series and I’m going to hold onto this one until either I buy a Mint Set or find a better example in change.
2023-P Roosevelt Dime
Condition: Mint State | Collectibility in This Grade: Moderate
The Roosevelt Dime series is a great series to collect. The series began in 1946 as a 90% silver coin and has remained in production ever since, switching to its current clad composition in 1965. Even the silver coins remain affordable, and the entire series, including Proofs, can be collected at a budget price. For those wishing to collect the series through circulation finds, Mint State coins can generally be pulled from change within four or five years of release. The best examples will be fresh coins pulled from rolls just as the date enters circulation.
What’s neat about building a set based on circulation finds is that first you fill in the holes and later you seek upgrades. In the process, you’ll often be surprised by the coins that make it through years of circulation without exhibiting much, if any, wear.
I believe that this coin is technically still in Mint State. It retains some of its Mint frost and has only a smattering on light contact marks. If I were filling holes starting in 2025, this would be a good placeholder until a better piece comes along. This coin is not nice enough to send to a grading service for encapsulation. To find one of these, I’d recommend buying several original rolls and sort for the very best of those, checking that the torch is fully struck. Even then, I’d submit coins only for my personal use, as it’s doubtful that any coin under MS67FT would sell for the cost of submission.
1979 Lincoln Cent
Condition: Extra Fine | Collectibility in This Grade: Moderate
What’s this? A copper penny?
This example features good, honest wear, but remains in the higher band of circulated grades. Lincoln’s hair detail is mostly intact, and the inscriptions are sharp. The most obvious signs of wear are at the center of the reverse, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
The Philadelphia Mint struck six billion Lincoln Cents in 1979, which was then a record mintage. Philadelphia would break that record again each year from 1980 to 1982. In 1982, the Mint struck more than 10 billion cents in Philadelphia and more than six billion in Denver. The 1982 cent mintage will never be matched.
As time goes on, finding Mint State Red examples of the 1979 Lincoln Cent in circulation will grow increasingly difficult. Coins stored for a long time in penny jars and discarded coins from collections will be the only sources outside of original rolls and Mint Sets. Collectors typically seek out Mint State Red cents from the Memorial Cent era, but hole-fillers starting out may be satisfied with having just one example of each date and mintmark until something better surfaces.
The melt value of this coin is 2¢. Melting the coins down for personal use is permissible, but to get the coin’s full melt value out of the cent is a hassle. Still, many people hoard pre-1982 copper cents for speculative reasons.
1993 Lincoln Cent
Condition: About Uncirculated 58 | Collectibility in This Grade: Moderate
Of all of the coins that I’m discussing today, this one is my favorite. An AU58 Red 1993 Lincoln Cent. 32 years old and still red!
I put this as a “moderate” in terms of collectibility. Not because the coin is particularly valuable, but because if one were building a set of Lincoln Cents pulled from circulation, this would undoubtedly be a coin that would fill its hole for a long time. To beat this coin, one would have to acquire a specimen from a fresh roll or Mint Set. You won’t find a seller for either of those at the 1¢ cost that I paid to get this coin.
2022 Lincoln Cent
Condition: About Uncirculated 58 | Collectibility in This Grade: Low
Three years after entering circulation and we can already see the impact that environmental exposure is having on the surfaces of this coin. Better 2022 Lincoln Cents still circulate and I don’t think there’s any good reason to hold onto a coin with poor eye appeal.
2023 Lincoln Cent
Condition: Mint State | Collectibility in This Grade: Moderate
This 2023 Lincoln Cent looks a lot nicer than the one I received with spots and scuffs last month. That coin, technically still in Mint State, is easily bettered here, but nicer coins abound and I’d keep looking for one from a fresh roll that is less banged up. If you wanted one coin from each mint in each denomination, the Mint’s annual Uncirculated Coin Set is the way to go. However, those sell for about $25 to $30, which seems like a bit much.
Checking for that scarce variety that we mentioned last month, the one with an extra “V” located to the left of the V.D.B. initials on the bust truncation, turned up nothing. That’s a shame, as the presence of that error would turn this ordinary penny into a collectible coin worth $70 or more.
If the Lincoln Cent truly does take its final bow in 2025, expect to see many new collectors come into the hobby looking for pennies before they disappear. If that happens, it will be coin collectors who preserve the cent for future generations to study and admire.
How Did We Do Today?
Pulling coins from change is not about hitting home runs; it’s about looking through common coins carefully and with consideration. Often, it’s a goal-driven pursuit, and those who find joy in the experience will sometimes come across something unusual, extraordinary, and potentially valuable. Usually, however, the value is in the time spent looking at coins and sorting them into “keep” and “spend” piles, filling holes or tubes, and looking forward to the next trip to the bank.
The 1993 Lincoln Cent in full red was probably the neatest coin in my grouping, but it was nice to see the 1968-D, even in its haggard state. I don’t think I’ve received every American Women Quarter, so I’ll keep that one. As for the 1979 Cent? Gresham’s Law. Why would I spend a copper penny when a zinc one will do?
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