Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
The penny, also known as the cent, is a coin in the United States representing one-hundredth of a dollar.It has been the lowest face-value physical unit of U.S. currency since the abolition of the half-cent in 1857 (the abstract mill, which has never been minted, equal to a tenth of a cent, continues to see limited use in the fields of taxation and finance).
The unique composition of the coin (low-grade steel coated with zinc, instead of the previously 95%-copper-based bronze composition) has led to various nicknames, such as wartime cent, steel war penny, zinc cent and steelie. The 1943 steel cent features the same Victor David Brenner design for the Lincoln cent which had been in use since 1909.
Penny is first attested in a 1394 Scots text, [n 1] a variant of Old English peni, a development of numerous variations including pennig, penning, and pending. [n 2] The etymology of the term "penny" is uncertain, although cognates are common across almost all Germanic languages [n 3] and suggest a base *pan-, *pann-, or *pand-with the individualizing suffix -ing.
The penny is inscribed GEORGIUS IV DEI GRATIA [g] and the date, while the reverse shows a right-facing seated Britannia with a shield and trident, inscribed BRITANNIAR REX FID DEF. [h] The penny at this time weighed 18.8 grams and had a diameter of 34 millimetres, the same as Boulton's 1806–1807 pennies. [18]
The Lincoln cent (sometimes called the Lincoln penny) is a one-cent coin that has been struck by the United States Mint since 1909. The obverse or heads side was designed by Victor David Brenner , as was the original reverse, depicting two stalks of wheat (thus "wheat pennies", struck 1909–1958).
The Lincoln cent or Lincoln penny is also colloquially referred to as a wheat penny because the reverse features two wheat heads. The 1909 penny weighs 3.11 g (0.110 oz) and has a 19 mm (0.75 in) diameter with a plain edge. The composition of the penny is bronze. [1] Its metal composition is 95% copper, 2.5% tin and 2.5% zinc. [2]
A United States one-cent coin, also known as a penny. The cent is a monetary unit of many national currencies that equals a hundredth (1 ⁄ 100) of the basic monetary unit. The word derives from the Latin centum, 'hundred'. The cent sign is commonly a simple minuscule (lower case) letter c.
The history of the English penny can be traced back to the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of the 7th century: to the small, thick silver coins known to contemporaries as pæningas or denarii, though now often referred to as sceattas by numismatists.