3-Coin Last US Cent Sets To Be Auctioned

I'm growing disgusted with the Mint's recent practice of auctioning artificial rarities. They could have made an affordable set for the average collector, akin to a Coin and Chronicles Set or a Coin and Currency Set or even a special little proof set. Something that most people could afford to honor the historic end of the cent. But no, they again chose to make a gold product that's wayyyyy too expensive for the vast majority of collectors! It's ridiculous.

I've been a longtime defender of the Mint, not anymore.

Well said @CollegeBarbers. I agree 100% with your sentiment.

It will be in good company with my Kennedy half dollar set, where the 2014 gold issue is suspiciously absent.

Lets just hope that it will not be a gold plate on zinc cent

Came by for a quick look and this thread caught my eye!

They'll be less rare than a 1943 copper, or a 1982-D copper small date... It's not like the omega cents will actually have been "circulated" either. From my understanding of it, it seems to me they're modifying the last die to add the privy for the last sets? Isn't this simply a variety? I'm very curious as to the specifics, but there are much rarer varieties... The gold penny is a non-circulating commemorative variety in my mind

No book will ever have a spot for them... Unless someone comes up with a real pricy limited run of 232

The mint is capitalizing on the trend seen in many collectible hobbies nowadays, be it records, cards, or coins. I'm for it if it garners any general interest in numismatics or music history / physical media. They all seem to have jumped the shark in one way or another in doing so, but the appetite appears present. Magic the Gathering is doing crossovers with every IP under the sun, and every record being pressed nowadays seems to have multi-tiered pricing or limited editions and pressing variants

The "blood-filled" Friday the 13th soundtrack comes to mind, ridiculously expensive for a new soundtrack.

More extreme (add gambling) and perhaps relevant, MtG released a 1/1 "The Ring" card (Lord of the Rings crossover) into circulation at random that was eventually purchased by Post Malone for over $2 million.

Work's been crazy and I haven't been around as much as I'd like, here's my 2 cents for the last week. Ridiculous releases, some artificially rare, but greater interest and continuation of the hobbies we love on the whole

(PS: CollegeBarbers, I do agree by the way, just trying to find the positive side)

The 232 "omega" cents are a fitting symbolic tribute to this famous coin. If they are priced at $200 billion each the US national debt would be paid off.

But seriously, most collectors of the series will not feel that this and the gold one are an essential part of it. Interesting, but in a category of its own.

Thanks to Mint Director Brandon Beach someone is going to pay big $ for an Omega cent with his unique fingerprints.

I think those estimates are pretty spot on. I do think sets that have all 3 coins in the highest grade will go for a bit more. Sets with coins that have different grades will be hurt a little.

I do think that the mint only offering 232 sets is just plain wrong. Just because you can, it doesn't mean you should. The mint could have produced a nice set closing out the series that would have made a nice profit yet not restricted the number of complete Lincoln Cent sets down to 232. It's a real kick in the nuts to those who have been buying mint and proof sets year after year. Perhaps they were running out of time, but they only had to mint them this year. Nice sets with presentation quality documentation could have been produced later and the sets released in 2026.