3 rare Wheat pennies worth over $99 million! Learn more about them

Wheat pennies are those produced between the years 1909 and 1958 and the worth of these pennies increases greatly with their rarity and the story behind their formulation. There is however a set of these coins that are much more that mere trinkets – they are some of the rarest and most valuable coins.

In fact, some Wheat pennies have been sold for whopping prices and their value increases because of factors such as rarity, minting mistakes and historical value. Having listed and described various Wheat pennies before, here are three super valuable Wheat pennies that have not been found in circulation for more than a century, and their worth is still increasing:

1943 Copper Wheat Penny

The Copper Wheat Penny of 1943 is amongst the most popular U.S error coins to this date. Its production was in 1943 was done using steel since copper used in producing pennies was required for the Second World War. It was also produced in small numbers — an inadvertent few pennies are made from copper thus making them very rare.

The world has very few of these pennies in circulation, and that has made their prices skyrocket to millions. A copper penny that went up for sale in 2012 sold for $169,000, and a similarly circulated 1943 penny sold for $750,000 last year, and a circulated 1943 penny that was just auctioned off recently went for nearly $1.7 million.

1909-S VDB Wheat Penny

The 1909-S VDB Wheat Penny is also another valuable coin that has pulled the collectors’ attention. This was the first in the series known as the Wheat series and it was minted in the San Francisco mint with the initials VDB on the back corner of the reverse side.

Thanks to the additional territorial clause spurred controversy over the size of the initials that Walking Liberty placed on the piece, production was terminated early, resulting into the 1909-S VDB Wheat penny being one of the rarest circulated pennies. Like many other ancient Greek coins, these coins can range between tens of thousands of dollars if purchased in high grade condition and some mint state specimens have been known to have been sold for nearly $1 million.

1955 Doubled Die Wheat Penny

The 1955 Doubled Die Wheat Penny also contains a notable feature of this type of coins. The doubling of the design elements on the front of the coin particularly concerning the date and inscriptions can easily be noted. This was during minting process, and as noted earlier, most of them were not in circulation as they came with some defect.

Due to the rarity of this particular coin, collectors are willing to spend large amount of money for this piece, with circulated specimens can be bought for over $100,000. That is why this wheat penny is one of the most valuable Wheat pennies due to its particular minting defect and the history behind this coin.

Coin NameYearMint MarkAuction Price
1943 Copper1943None$1.7 million
1909-S VDB1909S$1 million
1955 Doubled Die1955None$100,000
1944 Steel1944None$400,000
1922 No D1922None$80,000
Also Read : $22 Million Treasures Five Rare Dimes and a Bicentennial Quarter Still Circulating

These coins bear an interest how mistakes, scarcity and historical significance make a penny as valuable as many millions of dollars. These coins are still sought by collectors and since people’s passion towards coin collecting increases, the price to these exceptional coins also increases as well.

FAQs

Q. What makes the 1943 Copper Wheat Penny special and why is it of so much worth?

A. Why this coin is considered to be valuable? There was a mistake made in minting the 1943 copper Wheat Penny. Some pennies were meant to be produced from steel during WW II but a few were minted in copper which makes them really rare.

Q. How can I know if I have 1955 Doubled Die Wheat Penny?

A. Defective striking can be seen in the 1955 Doubled Die Wheat Penny, with the date and other inscriptions having an apparently doubled look. Possibly, you possess this infrequent valuable coin, if its repetition reaches its doubled value.

Q. What is so significant regarding the 1909-S VDB Wheat Penny?

A.The 1909-S VDB Wheat Penny is one of the most valuable pennies because it was the first Wheat penny ever minted, and due to scandal in the United States over the large initials of its designer, less were produced than of any other pennies minted in the same year.

Q. Are all 1944 Steel Pennies rare and valuable?

A.Yes, 1944 Steel Pennies are very scarce since pennies that year should be made from copper. Few were produced accidentally in steel, therefore, those pieces are very rare and desirable.

Leave a Comment