Q: Why do the U.S. bullion coins have face dollar values? It strikes me as highly unlikely that someone is going to use a $25 half-ounce Gold Eagle to pay their $15 Domino's pizza bill when the coin consists of about $140 worth of gold and costs $156! I understand that the coins are a convenient way to buy the metal, but I never understood why the dollar value is on them, unless it's just to show that it's backed by the U.S. government. - Cris C.
A: You've pretty much answered your own question. Placing a statement of value on a bullion coin reassures the marketplace that the coin is indeed a legal-tender instrument backed by the issuing government. The face values of American Eagles are purposely made very low (well below their value as precious metal) to discourage people from using them as a medium of exchange. Without denominations, American Eagles would be perceived as medals, rather than coins - and, in fact, that's just what they would be. They would be very much like the American Arts Gold Medallions of the early 1980s. And in case you have forgotten, those short-lived issues fell on their collective faces, never achieving a foothold in the bullion marketplace.
Q: Would it be a lucrative venture to hoard commemorative quarters? - Karen
A: I assume you are referring to the 50-state Washington quarters currently being issued by the United States Mint. "Hoarding" is quite different from collecting; it denotes accumulation without any organized system, rather than acquisition through careful planning. I suppose in certain instances, hoarding could prove profitable; you could have made money, for instance, by pulling silver half dollars, quarters and dimes from pocket change in the mid-1960s, then selling them when the price of silver went up. But as a general rule, I encourage collecting, rather than hoarding. It's true that demand for the first two statehood quarters has driven up the value of mint-state examples - so yes, in the short term, you could have made money by setting those aside when they first came out (assuming you could have gotten them for just face value or only a modest premium). I don't see this happening with the later quarters, though, for the Mint has increased production levels dramatically, and promoters who need the coins are taking steps now to obtain sufficient supplies as the coins come out.
Q: I've seen references to Type I and Type II sets of the 1979 and 1981 U.S. proof coins. What is the difference in the two types? - d69
A: These terms refer to the "S" mint mark, which denotes that the proof coins were produced at the San Francisco Mint. On most proof coins of 1979 and most proof Susan B. Anthony dollars of 1981, the mint mark was clogged and looks like a shapeless blob (Type I). Some of these coins did have clear mint marks (Type II), but they were much scarcer. As a result, dealers and collectors will pay a significant premium for proof sets of these two years in which the coins all have clear, sharp mint marks.
Q: I just began coin collecting and of course bought a Whitman folder for Lincoln cents. My question is regarding 1982 cents. How can I tell a zinc from a copper? I assume there is a physical difference between the large date and the small date. Thanks for your help. - Paul M.
A: Partway through production of 1982 Lincoln cents, the U.S. Mint changed the coins' composition from brass (95 percent copper and 5 percent zinc) to one that is predominantly zinc (a core of 99.2 percent zinc and 0.8 percent copper with a copper barrel plating). Cents dated 1982 come in both metallic varieties - and to complicate matters even more, there are large-date and small-date versions in both compositions. Viewed side by side, the large and small dates are relatively easy to tell apart, and there isn't much money riding on the difference, since both are quite common. Distinguishing between the brass and zinc cents is easiest by weight, rather than color: The brass cent is heavier, at 3.11 grams versus 2.5 grams for the zinc cent. Again, both kinds are common. In all, there are seven different varieties of 1982 cents. Just one combination is missing: There is no small-date cent in brass from the Denver Mint.
Q: I have a 1993 quarter that has a head on both sides. I would like to know if there is any monetary value to this coin other than just a quarter. Thank you. - Lenny
A: Two-headed quarters are conversation pieces, not collectibles. Someone undoubtedly went to a great deal of trouble to hollow out two coins and put the two "heads" sides together. But it wasn't the U.S. Mint, and the value of this coin is in its curiosity, not its collectibility. And you'll have to be content with the psychic income you get from amazing your friends.
Q: I came across a 1965 quarter that has Washington's head on both sides. It appears to be a real coin. It has the copper on the sides just like a regular quarter. Can you tell me anything about this? Thank you in advance for your help. - Karen C.
A: The previous answer applies to your coin, too. Obviously, the folks who are finagling with Washington quarters aren't too particular which date they use.
Q:Today, while browsing through my cash register at work, I noticed a wheat penny. The penny is a 1943 "D" copper penny. I thought it was one of those VERY rare copper ones, but I put it through that "magnet" test and the magnet picked it up. What is something like this worth? Also, how would one paint/convert it from the original zinc to the copper tone? Thanx for any info. - RangerMSG1
A: The magnet test has shown that your coin is a "steelie" - a steel cent that came with a zinc coating. The Mint made more than a billion of these in 1943, so as you can imagine it isn't rare or valuable; in fact, it commands little or no premium except in mint condition, and not a great deal even then. Quick-buck artists seeking to foist off steel cents as the rare bronze variety sometimes copper-plated them. I've never heard of anyone "painting" them bronze, however.
Q: I have a 1943 wheat-back penny. Is this worth more than a penny? Someone told me it was valuable, but I have no idea. - Myrna F.W.
A: It would be valuable if it were bronze, but the odds against that are about 20 million to 1. Put your coin to the magnet test, as the previous questioner did. If it is attracted to a magnet, then it's steel, rather than bronze. If it isn't drawn to the magnet, then you should take it to a coin dealer in your area and see whether it just might be that one in 20 million.
Q: I have a 1921 Morgan dollar, but I cannot find a registration mark on it. How do you tell what type of Morgan coin it is ? Thanks. - Bill J.
A:By "registration mark," I assume you mean mint mark. In 1921, the final year of production for the popular Morgan dollar, mintages hit an all-time high (totaling more than 86 million) and examples were struck at all three mints then in operation - the main mint in Philadelphia and the branches in Denver and San Francisco. Coins from Philadelphia didn't carry a mint mark. On branch-mint pieces, the mint mark (either "D" or "S") can be found below the wreath at the base of the reverse. All three date-mint varieties are extremely common.
Ed Reiter is senior editor of COINage and author of the award-winning column "My Two Cents' Worth," which appears in the magazine each month. He wrote the weekly Numismatics column in the Sunday New York Times for nearly a decade, and also is former editor of Numismatic News.
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