1916 Penny Nickel Not Copper?

Please give us the ebay lot number.



to the CCF!

I can't reply at least seems like I can't the only way to post photos is by saying an app? It's a 1916 nickel penny it's in circulated condition scratches not super shiny noylt silver it's tge right size and weight.i was an engineer. God knows though thus site is like a whole new education. I've had or known this coin for 50 years my pops collected all sorts this one was in his little favorites box with some gold nuggets and a few interesting bits . It's a real coin just not seen one so I put it on ebay it must be rare but I've a lot of coins I've not looked through yet so maybe nothing special I'll keep attempting photos but it's on ebay as error 1916 nickel 1 penny no ones interested so it's probably nothing valuable

The plating theory was my first thought tbh I have been so list I almost cut it in half as its not valuable if uts plated and if it is I had the same as I did prior. But plating leaves a micron at the least on a coin and wear would show the underneath actually uneven wear it'd have had to be plated and circulated with perfect wear? And there's Hugh spots that would be worn especially in the past years . I thought it was silver tbh until I looked under my 50px jewllers scope and its not plated epns or other besides my grandfather was born in 1911 and my dad passed last year he'd had it all his life .so I guess it'll be one I'll just leave as is. I'd hoped ebay would have ideas I wasn't selling it that's for sure. I wish I could post photos here just for the interest.

Description from ebay listing:
Rare George v end of war error nickel penny. Weights and size all correct.an unknown coin probably a die practice or accident It is not silver!!!!! It's a nickel over copper not steel a very unknown coin . A well known london coin shop say it shouldn't exist. There's an earlier error in1914 recently sold. I have had this coin and its been in our home for over 90 years .

It's in good condition sadly its been in a bag of coins and as kids played with. There is a recent similar later coin in nickel was made at the mint . Has been looked at by a professional. Defiantly error nickel 1916 NOT SILVER. A valuation is expensive if not sold will be sent away and boxed and certified .the price will ofc be considerably higher. Anyone interested I'm happy to send video and microscope photos .

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It is pretty obvious to me that this was a worn coin that was plated at some point.

Absolutely 100% plated post-mint, and not a mint error.

While a "wrong metal" penny is entirely possible, as Britain was making pennies for use on Jamaica at the time that were made of cupronickel, they are quite rare - I believe there's only one known, from 1919 - and this isn't one of them.

People back then would plate a penny, and hope to pass it as a florin or halfcrown - easy to do if you push it across the counter face-up, since the two coins are about the same size and the obverses of all British coins are much the same.

It is, of course, illegal to plate a coin in such a way, as it is tantamount to counterfeiting.

That the coin did not leave the mint looking like this is obvious, for one very simple reason: the coin is worn. If it left the mint looking like that, a shiny obviously-not-bronze penny, what would it have circulated as? A penny? Somebody would have quickly noticed it was the wrong colour, and withdrawn it. But to acquire as much wear as this coin shows, thousands of people must have looked at it and spent it, not regarding it as anything special or different. Which would be incredibly improbable; a couple of people might be sufficiently ignorant or oblivious, but not thousands. Far more probable, is that all that wear and circulation happened while the coin looked perfectly normal, and the coin was only kept and put aside after the plating occurred.

Your father probably kept it because he himself got conned into accepting it as a florin. He couldn't bank it or spend it himself, as that would have been illegal; the only options were keeping it, handing it in to the police, or throwing it away.

I'm glad you got the photo I can't figure to upload struggled to answer just FYI if it was plated who did it my father was no Che.ist no collector and tbh he had 3 coins few stamps and as a country guy it'd been in his box from 1940 and was given to him from my grandfather. I've had the bits n pieces for 40 years so if it's plated it's really good. Under my microscope I can't see it I sold the stamps they were valuable. But either way it's a strange one. Because from what I know there's possibly a few like it . Maybe it's not valuable but it's defiantly not plated. I'm no coin collector but as an engineer I'm not a tota fool it's cupra nickel it's stayed this way and it's not taken care off grandkids play with all the old coins I've got in a jar . I've recently bought a few sets of pre 47 just for the silver content . Not really looked for errors or dates. So maybe one day I'll get it looked at but I'm on the northern Isles so for now it's a penny and worth at least that . Than you for the knowledge though truly appreciated