$11.35 for a Penny? Sure, Why Not?

 

If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll know I have a love-hate relationship with the humble 1¢ coin.  Awhile ago, I found this in a bank roll:

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For those of you who didn’t live through the ’70’s, you could get two of these for only $1:

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They came glued to a card with weird “facts” associating Lincoln and Kennedy:

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Here’s the reverse of my find. You can see where the coin had been glued to the card. You can also just barely make out the shadow of the stamp from the other side:

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Because that is what these were. Just die stamps on the coins. Someone etched a crude portrait of JFK on the end of a steel rod, used a hammer to stamp it on the coin, and sold them for 50 times face value. Actually, a lot of someones did this. . .

There were actually several varieties of this scam. This is another. As you can see, they hit the die a little harder this time:

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This is the reverse of that coin. Again, there are traces of glue from where it was stuck to the card. The flattened area opposite the die strike is more prominent:

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And here’s yet another, all found in circulation. Apparently dupes were falling for this at least until 1980:

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Here’s the reverse of that coin. The flattening caused by the stamp is plainly visible, but there does not appear to be any glue residue:

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I had seen this ad when doing research about these coins:

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I had a feeling, as Littleton was only selling them for a nickel each, that they weren’t gluing them to a fancy card. A search on Ebay pulled up this:

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The reverse of the coin in the Ebay auction does not appear to have any glue residue:

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Except the coin in the auction is from 1973 and the design is different from my 1980 piece.  By the way, you can have this outstanding numismatic example for a mere:

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I didn’t realize the definition of “engraving” was “using a crude stamp to make an impression on a coin.”

So, for only $11.35, you can get something that cost the original owner a nickel, and for all practical purposes is worth a penny.

Now, if you really desire one of these things, message me.  I send it to you for half price, $2.95, and I’ll even throw in shipping.  Your prize will arrive in a hi-tech protective case:

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There are 17 comments.

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  1. Miffed White Male Member
    Miffed White Male
    @MiffedWhiteMale

    Did anybody ever stamp a Lincoln head on a  Kennedy half-dollar?  You could probably get a heck of a markup for that.

    • #1
  2. BDB Inactive
    BDB
    @BDB

    Miffed White Male (View Comment):

    Did anybody ever stamp a Lincoln head on a Kennedy half-dollar? You could probably get a heck of a markup for that.

    My Dad called them “Kennedy Nickels”.

    • #2
  3. E. Kent Golding Moderator
    E. Kent Golding
    @EKentGolding

    Maybe they could make a stamp of Biden sniffing Susan B Anthony’s. or Sacagawea’s  hair.

    • #3
  4. JosePluma, Local Man of Mystery Coolidge
    JosePluma, Local Man of Mystery
    @JosePluma

    Miffed White Male (View Comment):

    Did anybody ever stamp a Lincoln head on a Kennedy half-dollar? You could probably get a heck of a markup for that.

    Apparently not, but they did this:

    And this:

    1809-1865 Abraham Lincoln - U S President in Color on a Kennedy Half ...

    It looks like pasting a picture of Lincoln on the coin is cheaper than stamping it.

    • #4
  5. Judge Mental Member
    Judge Mental
    @JudgeMental

    E. Kent Golding (View Comment):

    Maybe they could make a stamp of Biden sniffing Susan B Anthony’s. or Sacagawea’s hair.

    Do it.  You could probably sell about a million of those.

    • #5
  6. Douglas Pratt Coolidge
    Douglas Pratt
    @DouglasPratt

    I thought it was illegal to deface US currency.

    • #6
  7. Judge Mental Member
    Judge Mental
    @JudgeMental

    Douglas Pratt (View Comment):

    I thought it was illegal to deface US currency.

    Understanding that I have no idea what I’m talking about, it’s not illegal to scratch or otherwise damage a coin, otherwise you’d be a lot more careful with your spare change.  And since they are stamping in a blank area, it could be argued that they are not defacing the existing design, simply damaging it.

    • #7
  8. Judge Mental Member
    Judge Mental
    @JudgeMental

    Judge Mental (View Comment):

    E. Kent Golding (View Comment):

    Maybe they could make a stamp of Biden sniffing Susan B Anthony’s. or Sacagawea’s hair.

    Do it. You could probably sell about a million of those.

    Oh, and send a few to Donald Trump.  He might order a million so he can throw them to the crowd at rallies.

    • #8
  9. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    Judge Mental (View Comment):

    E. Kent Golding (View Comment):

    Maybe they could make a stamp of Biden sniffing Susan B Anthony’s. or Sacagawea’s hair.

    Do it. You could probably sell about a million of those.

    Biden would use his emergency covid powers to declare it illegal–a threat to democracy. 

    • #9
  10. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    Douglas Pratt (View Comment):

    I thought it was illegal to deface US currency.

    They’re adding a face, not removing one. 

    • #10
  11. BDB Inactive
    BDB
    @BDB

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    Douglas Pratt (View Comment):

    I thought it was illegal to deface US currency.

    They’re adding a face, not removing one.

    Go to your room.  

    • #11
  12. Bishop Wash Member
    Bishop Wash
    @BishopWash

    Douglas Pratt (View Comment):

    I thought it was illegal to deface US currency.

    For a while, many years ago, I was active with the Where’s George website. One could enter the serial number of a dollar bill, mark it in some manner, and hopefully watch it travel the country or world if you were lucky. I think I got one hit from Europe. The site had a link to the relevant code on marking currency in its FAQ, but I can’t get to the site at work. Writing the URL seemed to be okay as long as you didn’t obscure the denomination. The site used to sell an ink stamp but had to stop as the Secret Service saw it as advertising on currency, which is illegal.

    • #12
  13. Jerry Giordano (Arizona Patriot) Member
    Jerry Giordano (Arizona Patriot)
    @ArizonaPatriot

    One small correction to the “fact sheet.”  Lincoln did not serve in the Senate.  He ran and lost to Stephen Douglas, in the Senate campaign featuring the famous Lincoln-Douglas debates.  Lincoln later defeated Douglas in the 1860 Presidential election.

    Lincoln and Kennedy did both serve in the House.

    • #13
  14. Bishop Wash Member
    Bishop Wash
    @BishopWash

    Jerry Giordano (Arizona Patrio… (View Comment):

    One small correction to the “fact sheet.” Lincoln did not serve in the Senate. He ran and lost to Stephen Douglas, in the Senate campaign featuring the famous Lincoln-Douglas debates. Lincoln later defeated Douglas in the 1860 Presidential election.

    Lincoln and Kennedy did both serve in the House.

    I think six of those facts around the Senate line are talking about the successors. The next line says that they were southern Democrats, which isn’t true of Lincoln or Kennedy. The sheet needs to be clearer.

    • #14
  15. BDB Inactive
    BDB
    @BDB

    Bishop Wash (View Comment):

    Jerry Giordano (Arizona Patrio… (View Comment):

    One small correction to the “fact sheet.” Lincoln did not serve in the Senate. He ran and lost to Stephen Douglas, in the Senate campaign featuring the famous Lincoln-Douglas debates. Lincoln later defeated Douglas in the 1860 Presidential election.

    Lincoln and Kennedy did both serve in the House.

    I think six of those facts around the Senate line are talking about the successors. The next line says that they were southern Democrats, which isn’t true of Lincoln or Kennedy. The sheet needs to be clearer.

    This Mad-magazine level analysis was popular when I was a kid.  I imagine it still seems significant to kids.  No harm in it.  No value either.

    • #15
  16. EJHill+ Podcaster
    EJHill+
    @EJHill

    Those old Lincoln-Kennedy comparisons used to end, “When Lincoln found out he was elected President he was in Monroe, Maryland…”

    • #16
  17. The Cloaked Gaijin Member
    The Cloaked Gaijin
    @TheCloakedGaijin

    EJHill+ (View Comment):

    Those old Lincoln-Kennedy comparisons used to end, “When Lincoln found out he was elected President he was in Monroe, Maryland…”

    Hilarious!

    How about?

    Kennedy’s wife was crazy refined.

    Lincoln’s wife was refined crazy.

    • #17
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