Miller said 10 to 15 of the copper pennies exist today. Lutes set his copper penny aside to study it later when he found it in a bundle of change in the Pittsfield High School cafeteria in A US Army veteran, he would amass some 50, coins by the s when he retired from the family manufacturing business, according to Karpenski. Lutes died in September at the age of 87, according to Miller. The Pittsfield resident was a quiet man with a small circle of friends that included fellow members of the coin and genealogy clubs he belonged to.
In , an extremely fine example that was reportedly owned by a female friend of late Chief Engraver John R. In his Numismatic Encyclopedia , the controversial Walter Breen , using information from the grading firm ANACS , said he thought there were 40 examples of the copper cents, but Q. David Bowers has noted he does not believe this is supported by the evidence. Today, a total of 27 copper wheat pennies are confirmed to exist and have been graded—including six of the S , as well as the unique D.
The penny was dated S, but it was composed of copper, rather than the expected zinc-coated steel. Instead, he endeavored to learn more about it, writing to numerous experts and authorities in the succeeding decades.
When the S copper cent finally came to light in , the finder's heirs also provided a file of correspondence related to the coin. Among the experts Wing had received replies from, there was a response from the U. In a letter dated August 20, , U.
Mint Acting Director Leland Howard wrote: "In reference to your letter of August 11th, there were no copper cents struck during the calendar year at any of the coinage Mints. Only the zinc-coated steel cent was struck during that year. Of course, we know otherwise today, but imagine what a letdown that must have been to a teenage boy who was hoping for official confirmation of what he knew had to be true: that the coin was struck by the United States Mint. Wing didn't give up, though, and his persistence paid off.
He showed the copper penny to the Director of the San Francisco Mint in , who gave him the private opinion that it was genuine. A attempt by Wing's father to have the coin examined by the U. Treasury Department in Washington, D. It's a mystery as to why officials from the Treasury Department or the mint did not want to authenticate this rare coin.
The experts at the Smithsonian felt that the copper penny was genuine, and this opinion was put in writing in a June 18, , letter from V.
Clain-Stefanelli, Curator of the Division of Numismatics at the Smithsonian: "The authenticity of this piece is in my opinion beyond doubt. In fact, as you certainly recall, Mr. Mendel L. Because of its collector value, the copper cent has been counterfeited by coating steel cents with copper or by altering the dates of , , and pennies.
The easiest way to determine if a cent is made of steel, and not copper, is to use a magnet. If it sticks to the magnet, it is not copper.
If it does not stick, the coin might be of copper and should be authenticated by an expert.
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