1953 Henning Nickel Verified

Here is an old thread from 2009 where we discussed the 'definitive test' for a Henning nickel.

https://www.coincommunity.com/forum...PIC_ID=53117

In the thread, the CCF members came up with the following characteristics. It would be great if the current experts could add any new insights to this summary.

1. The possible Henning dates are '39, '44, '46', '47 and '53
2. The 1944 is obvious since it lacks the large mint mark
3. The hole at the bottom of the "R" in "Pluribus" is a definite indicator of a Henning.
4. Weight alone can not be used as an indicator .... pyrbob reports a range of 4.7 grams to 5.4 grams for his Henning.
5. Henning lack detail and often lack full rims.
6. The Henning surfaces look porus.
7. Some Henning have raised dots 'pimples' inside the "M" of "UNUM"

The biggest problem I have seen is that the Henning dies were in constant flux. JCronin's 53 is pretty clean. If not for the XRF, I don't think it would look out of the ordinary in a roll of genuine 53s. The weight is likely what got it noticed by someone looking for the Hennings. The majority of my non-loops are under 5g with the lightest being 4.66g and only 3 being above 5.3g. I do have several in the 5.0-5.11g range. Of the non-looped 44s, I have seen a couple different 'features'. The first is located to the right of the Monticello wall slightly above midway. On really pronounced coins it looks like a small dog (I know, a stretch). I have seen this feature on a photo of one 1947. A second feature is located to the left of the dome. Usually, it is noted as a single raised dot. But, to the left of the dot is a single flame shape. I have also seen this on a photo of a 1939. I have not seen these 2 features together on the same coin. I also have quite a few with no distinguishable features on the reverse. Without a doubt, there is only one way to identify a Henning with certainty and that is using an XRF scan to determine the alloy. What we don't know is what die combinations that Henning used. It goes without doubt that he did use the looped-R reverse die with the 5 documented dates. I have never seen an example of a looped-R that was less than 5g. And, we don't know what the coins that got tossed in the rivers were in regards to obverse/reverse sets. In a nutshell, the degradation of his dies likely limited the longevity of unique features being pressed into the blanks resulting in less consistencies of identifiable die markers. I do note that my observations are on a couple dozen posted pictures and my own collection of Hennings. Isn't this what makes this fun? Sure has kept me fascinated.

What kind of value are these?

Looking for your non-1944 Hennings to photograph

(Adding this post to JCronin's thread on Hennings.)

For you Henning nickel aficionados I came across a post on a metal detecting forum where the poster is showing images of a 1945 with no P over the dome.

Quote:
... "Well, this one is a 1945 with no mint mark above the dome, which also has the same worn look as all of Henning's other nickels. And though there are no other markers I can find, no "EN" mark or looped R in PLURIBUS or reverse die break, it does have a small dot above the dome at about 1 o'clock (dots being indicative of counterfeit coins) and weighs in at just 4.83 grams."...

There is an obverse image of a 1945 nickel and a war-nickel looking reverse image with no P over the dome.
Here's the link for the thread:
https://www.treasurenet.com/threads...very.686695/

Hope it's the real deal for you folks and the sixth a seventh year is now known?

*** Edited by Staff to fix broken link ***

Hthers in the know agree with you.
(I reached out to JCronin by email and he is 100% sure it is not a Henning.)

Hope you folks are able to determine the last year in the group.

Hope the link is working for others here and you don't need to be a member of the metal detecting forum to see the image. The link wsn't working for some folks.