![]() ![]() This happened to gold coins as well after 1803. Thus, silver dollars, which had been overvalued relative to Spanish 8 real coins, became scarce - to the point where the Mint ceased producing them in1804. dollar was backed by silver and gold at a ratio established by Congress - when the actual value of the metals relative to each other changed, the result was the export of the more valuable coin to be melted down. The coin got this nickname because most people thought the picture of Miss Liberty on the obverse (front) looked silly.This problem was made worse by the bi-metallic standard used to back the coinage. "Silly Head" is the popular name for a U.S. Honest, you’d be lucky to have a silly head! Here’s why. They were made from metal that contained 88 parts copper to 12 parts nickel, which gave them a light or white color. These were the Flying Eagle one cent coins of 1856–58 and the Indian Head one cent coins of 1859-64. Yes, there were "white cents" that didn't look at all like pennies. There were copper pennies and white cents?. However, the coin does carry the initials of two different engravers. On the obverse, we see his face in profile on the reverse, he is seated in the Lincoln Memorial. The Lincoln cent (1959 to 2007) featured this beloved president on both sides of the coin. ![]() Revere's metals company once supplied the Mint with rolled copper for the production of early cents. Besides being quite the skilled horseman and informant, Paul Revere was a silversmith and a contributor to our nation's coinage. Which Revolutionary War hero also helped make coins?. Soon after, the Mint began issuing gold and silver coins as well. That first batch consisted of 11,178 copper cents. The Mint produced its first circulating coins-all $111.78 worth of them-in March 1793. The cent and half cent were made of copper. The dollar, half dollar, quarter, dime, and half dime were composed of silver. Gold was used in the $10, $5, and $2.50 pieces. A 1792 law directed American money to be made of gold, silver and copper. We used to trade gold, silver, and copper. In 1909, President Lincoln appeared on a one-cent coin and became the first real person-as well as the first American president-to have his face appear on a regular-issue American coin. George Washington was our first President – but not the first President on a circulating coin. It was so big that it was hard to use, but it wasn't replaced by a smaller penny until 1857, more than 50 years later. America's first one-cent piece, called the "large cent," was first struck in 1793, one year after the Mint opened. Would you like fries with that? This penny is almost as big as a half dollar. Only nickels are one solid material-that same 75% copper/25% nickel alloy. Pennies are made of zinc coated with copper. The outside layers are three-quarters copper and one-quarter nickel, and the "filling" is solid copper. You might have little round sandwiches in your pocket. Fortunately, pennies were only made that way for one year. Because the color was silvery, it was easy to mistake a penny for a dime. In 1943, copper was needed for war materials, so pennies were made out of zinc-coated steel. Although they are different colors, pennies and dimes are very close in size. Fun Facts related to the Penny Once it was hard to tell a penny from a dime. ![]()
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