1993 Zinc Cent Unplated

Because of all the circulation issues, no one would be able to call this one unplated, even if it had been at one time.
Two things are telling tell me this is all PSD.

The biggest tell for me is that there is no mint luster on the coin.

There is a also "double" contact mark below the bust near the rim. If you look at it closely, you will notice it is a darker grey on the interior of the hit than the rest of the surface. I would expect the zinc in both areas to be the same color (unless the hit is much newer).

For something like this, I tend to rely on Occam's Razor.

1. Two "odd things" have happened to this coin: the "lack of plating", and the "scuffing and dents". Occam' Razor says that the most likely explanation for both these manifestations is a single event: something caused both the stripping and the scuffing. "Environmental damage" can do both.

2. There are two possible explanations for this coin's appearance. Scenario 1: a coin is struck without plating, circulates for some time without anybody noticing that it's actually missing the plating, then lands on a carpark and gets scuffed. Scenario 2: a perfectly normal coin is dropped on a floor and gets scuffed up. Someone cleans the floor with ammonia (or something similar) without noticing (or caring) the coin is there and the ammonia solution dissolves copper but not zinc.

Occam's Razor says Scenario 2 is more probable than Scenario 1, because it has fewer improbable events in its timeline; it is therefore the one we can assume to be true.

I agree, PMD.

I'm curious here though. Is that cent larger in diameter than a would be normal cent?

Dearborn & cujohn I will check in the morning and post back with the results.