Pennies annoy many Americans. They supply perfect change as currency, but most are forgotten in a drawer or container. Check your pennies before throwing them out. Find the correct one and it may be worth more than your vehicle or house.
The 1943-D Lincoln Bronze Wheat Penny, struck in error during World War II when copper was essential for the war effort and most pennies were steel, is the most valuable U.S. cent. This penny sold for $1.7 million in 2010. In mint uncirculated form, it's worth $2.3 million.
But you don't have to travel back 80 years to find valuable pennies. An auction sold a 1983 one for a record $26,000.
Bronze-planchet 1983 Lincoln Cent. It sold on July 28 after 49 bids, CoinWeek said. The overall cost was $29,250, including a $3,250 buyer's fee. CoinWeek said that this high-grade specimen was found in 2006. Since then, “only a handful have been found.”
A Mint State grading of MS-65 Red from Professional Grading Service makes the coin “extremely rare,” according to Numismatic News. Great Collections, an auction organisation, called the penny “the finest known” “by a wide margin.”
Numismatic News revealed that 1963–1982 Lincoln pennies are solid brass comprised of 95% copper and 5% zinc. Collectors call them “bronze” since it was the alloy used from 1909 to 1962.
A $26,000 cent is a pleasant addition to any coin collection, but it's not as valuable as the most expensive pennies. Other than the 1943-D Lincoln Bronze Wheat Penny, these nine 1-cent coins are valuable:
1.1944-S Steel Wheat Penny: $1.1M 2.1793 Strawberry Leaf Cent: $862,500 3.1943-S Bronze Lincoln Cent: $282,000. 4.$258,000 1909 VDB Matte Proof Lincoln Penny 5.1958 Double Die Obverse Cent: $224,831 6.1856 Flying Eagle Cent: $172,500 7.$161,000 1864 Indian Head Penny “L” on Ribbon 8.1914-D Lincoln Penny: $159,000 9.$149,500 1926-S Lincoln Penny