A strange thing happened at the Philadelphia mint in 1955. One or more of the dies used to strike coins of the Lincoln cent series were prepared incorrectly, and were subsequently used to mint an error version of the Lincoln penny, thus creating a doubling effect on the obverse and giving birth to perhaps the most popular error coin in American numismatics history: the 1955 Double Die Penny.
The 1955 Double Die penny shows itself as a seemingly normal Lincoln cent. Upon closer examination, though, the 1955 Double Die Penny shows a dramatic doubling of the letters and numbers on the obverse, or front, of the coin. The 1955 Double Die Penny is not the first, nor the last, coin to have been minted from an incorrectly prepared die in the Lincoln Cent series. the 1955 Double Die Penny isn’t even the rarest or most valuable of the double die pennies from the Lincoln Cent series, as that distinction belongs to the 1969 Double Die Penny. The 1955 Double Die Penny is, however, the most popular and that makes it a very sought after coin.
Part of the reason for the huge popularity of the 1955 Double Die Penny is the media hype that surrounded the discovery of the 1955 Double Die Penny. It is unknown what number of the rare 1955 Double Die Penny escaped the Philadelphia mint but educated estimates put the number at around forty to fifty thousand. That number may seem like a lot but in numismatic scales, it is a very low mintage.
Many initial discoveries of the 1955 Double Die Penny happened in the New England area and, more specifically, the 1955 Double Die Penny was found in abundance coming from cigarette vending machines in the area. Since most specimens of the 1955 Double Die Penny were released into circulation, the number of mint state examples of the 1955 Double Die Penny is considerably less than the estimated amount of existing coins.
The 1955 double die is certainly worth having examined by a numismatic professional since many counterfeits have been discovered right along side the authentic versions. The coin experts at Nevada Coin & Jewelry have this particular expertise when dealing with the 1955 Double Die Penny and can guide you through the process of selling your example of this coin. The 1955 Double Die Penny can command significant prices so don’t leave it in the hands of novices. Just call or come in to any of the Nevada Coin & Jewelry locations in the greater Las Vegas area and put our coin experts to work for you today.
