Top 100 Rarest Pennies Worth Money (Most Expensive)

Could you be sitting on a fortune without even knowing it? That innocent penny in your pocket could be worth more than your car! While most people ignore pennies, smart collectors know that among America’s most common coins hide extraordinary treasures worth millions.

Here’s a mind-blowing reality: a 1793 Chain penny sold for $2,350,000, and a 1969-S Doubled Die from your lifetime fetched $126,500! Even a 1992 Close AM penny—just three decades old—sold for $25,850. These aren’t ancient relics; they’re coins that could still be hiding in your change jar today.

What transforms an ordinary cent into a life-changing discovery? Minting errors, historical significance, pristine condition, and metal composition mistakes can turn a worthless penny into a numismatic goldmine. The famous 1943 bronze cents and 1955 Doubled Dies prove that incredible wealth might be sitting right under your nose, waiting to be discovered in everyday pocket change.

 

 

The Rarest Pennies in US History (1787 – Present)

1. The Crown Jewel: 1793 Chain, Periods, S-4 Penny

Record Price: $2,350,000 (PCGS MS66 Brown, Heritage Auctions 2015)

Behold America’s numismatic holy grail! This 1793 Chain cent isn’t just the most expensive penny ever sold—it’s the coin that launched American coinage history. The Parmelee specimen recently sold for a record $2,350,000 in lot 4011 of the FUN Signature (Heritage, 1/2015), making it the ultimate treasure for any collector brave enough to dream big.

These coins are the very first federal type coins, minted before the 1793 half cents, or the other large cent designs. Mint records identify a total mintage of 36,103 Chain cents were delivered March 1 through March 12, 1793. But here’s the kicker: critics at the time thought the chain evoked an image of slavery. A wreath replaced the chain in later pennies, making this design a one-month wonder!

The S-4 variety is numismatic royalty for a reason. The periods that follow the date and LIBERTY are unprecedented among all 1793 cents. Walter Breen made the reasonable suggestion that a different engraver prepared this obverse. It’s like finding the rough draft of America’s first penny—and this rough draft just bought someone a mansion!

The coin was purchased for $76 the first time it appeared in an auction in 1879. From $76 to $2.35 million? That’s a return that would make Wall Street weep with envy!

 

2. The Million-Dollar Mystery: 1795 S-79 Reeded Edge Penny

Record Price: $1,265,000 (PCGS VG-10, Goldberg Auctioneers 2009)

Homer K. Downing discovered in 1947 in a New York City coin dealer’s junk box one example that brought $218,500—talk about dumpster diving paying off! The ultimate treasure hunt story involves famed dealer Henry Chapman discovering the variety and included in his auction of June 1916, where it brought the grand sum of $1.75!

But here’s where it gets wild: Only seven survivors are confirmed, all in low grade. In fact, the finest known is a PCGS graded VG10 coin—and that “terrible” condition just bought someone a million-dollar mansion! Greg Hannigan was the successful bidder and was acting on behalf of a collector who recently, during the summer of 2010, completed his set of all 295 Sheldon die varieties of “collectible” early large cents.

The weirdest part? It is extremely interesting to note that the workmanship of the die of the Liberty Head much resembles the famed painting of George Washington, also done in 1795, by Gilbert Stuart. When Mr. Stuart painted this portrait, General Washington was wearing wooden false teeth. So America’s rarest penny might feature our first president’s denture problems!

And get this drama: One well in excess of $4,000, and at the last minute by phone a bid of roughly $7,000, some of which was to be taken in trade. This was permissible but it turned out that the trade pieces were red uncirculated 1909-S.V.D.B. cents and the negotiations were not completed. Someone tried to trade pristine 1909-S VDB pennies but the deal fell through—imagine that regret today!

 

3. The Half-Cent Hero: 1794 C-7 High Relief Head Half Cent

Record Price: $1,150,000 (PCGS MS67 Red & Brown, Goldbergs 2014)

Wait, this isn’t even a penny—it’s worth TWICE as much! The very first Half Cent to sell for over one million dollars was the remarkable MS67 Red & Brown example illustrated above. Not only is this a rare variety, but it is the finest, reddest (is that a word?) of any Liberty Cap Half Cent. Yes, they literally asked “is that a word?” in the official description!

Here’s the most jaw-dropping appreciation story in numismatic history: To give you an idea of how prices have advanced, this coin could have been bought in 1977 for $22,000 (the lowest price asked by Fred Weinberg in one of his ads). From $22,000 to $1.15 million in just 37 years? That’s a 5,127% return that makes Amazon stock look like chump change!

The “High Relief Head” isn’t just a fancy name—the hair in high relief, and instantly recognizable even in low grades. The final three 1794 varieties, C-7, C-8, and B-9 (B-7, B-8, and B-9), are from a single obverse die that is distinctly different than the others. High relief coins are struck much deeper and harder – meaning the hair and other features stand up or stick out of the coin much more than the low relief varieties.

But here’s what makes this story legendary: In January 2014, this coin sold in the Goldbergs sale of the Missouri Cabinet for $1.15 million. The Missouri Cabinet was one of those mysterious old-time collections that suddenly surfaced, and when this half-cent hit the auction block, it rewrote the rulebook. Who knew that half a cent could be worth more than most people’s houses?

The collector who bought it in 1977 for $22,000 probably thought they were splurging. Little did they know they were making one of the greatest investments in American history—turning pocket change into mansion money!

 

4. The Unicorn’s Tale: 1799 S-189 Penny

Record Price: $977,500 (PCGS MS62 Brown, Goldberg Auctioneers 2009)

There is only one known mint state example of either variety, the 1799 normal date graded MS61 Brown by PCGS that sold in the September, 2009 auction of the Dan Holmes collection for $977,500. That’s right—out of all the 1799 pennies ever made, only ONE survived in mint condition, making it literally priceless!

But wait, it gets better! This MS62 that was found by an unidentified collector in the stock of London dealer A.H. Baldwin and Sons in the late 1920s (around 1928) and later sold in Boston to American Numismatic Association official Frank H. Shumway. Imagine browsing a London coin shop nearly a century ago and stumbling upon the only mint state 1799 cent in existence!

The plot thickens with this legendary collector story: “His record payment of $2,500 for the only known Uncirculated cent of 1799 brought him worldwide fame and letters from all corners of the earth.” – C.L. Wallace, in his obituary of Henry C. Hines, The Numismatist, February 1947. Henry Hines became internationally famous for spending what seemed like a fortune back then!

The 1799 cent has long been identified as the key issue in the Draped Bust series, and one of the three important dates in the series from 1793 to 1857. But here’s the market reality check: when it was sold again in 2017 by Stacks Bowers, it brought in only $540,500—proving that even million-dollar coins can lose nearly half their value!

The most amazing part? Stack’s Bowers sold a piece that PCGS graded as Fine 12 for $19,200 in their 2021 ANA Auction, and in 2021, a Poor 01 (!) 1799/8 variety sold for $1,320. When even a “Poor 01” brings over a grand, you know you’re dealing with numismatic royalty!

 

5. The Accident That Made History: 1796 C-1 “No Pole” Half Cent

Record Price: $891,250 (PCGS MS65 Brown, Goldberg Auctioneers 2014)

Sometimes the biggest mistakes create the greatest treasures! The extreme rarity of this variety can be laid at the feet of the diagnostic crack, which probably occurred during or shortly after the device punch with Liberty’s portrait and the cap was used to prepare the obverse die. The pole was not included in the device punch and would have been added to the die separately. But with the crack resulting in what must have seemed like an unusable die, the engraver probably chose to not waste any further time adding the pole to complete the die.

Current estimates suggest a total population of about 140 half cents dated 1796 including about 30 of the No Pole variety—making this a classic case of “mint reject becomes collector treasure!” The crack that made mint workers curse in 1796 now makes collectors swoon over two centuries later.

Here’s the promotional genius of the ages: When legendary dealer B. Max Mehl catalogued this coin in 1946, he couldn’t help himself when he wrote: “I am endeavoring to be conservative in both my description of condition of these coins, and also the use of superlative adjectives, but this gem is simply too much for me to overcome. It is simply too exquisite and thrilling a coin not to lavish all possible bouquets at it”. That’s a coin dealer literally losing his professional composure!

The market history is pure numismatic gold: The earliest known auction appearance was in W. Elliott Woodward’s October 1880 sale of the Ferguson Haines Collection, lot 416. Mr. Haines had acquired the coin from Scott & Co. two years earlier for $36. Then the 1796 No Pole became the first half cent to sell for more than half a million dollars when the fabulous Eliasberg specimen realized $506,000 in May 1996.

Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. summed up this piece in 1956: “This is the finest known specimen of the rarest half cent”. When the king of coin collectors calls something the finest and rarest, you better believe it! The Missouri Cabinet example that hit $891,250 proves that even “second finest” can buy you a mansion when dealing with numismatic royalty.

 

6. The Government’s Greatest Mistake: 1876-CC Twenty Cent Piece

Record Price: $870,000 (PCGS MS64, Heritage Auctions 2022)

In a letter dated March 19, 1877, the Director of the Mint (Henry R. Linderman) ordered the Superintendent of the Carson City Mint (James Crawford) to melt down all Twenty Cents still on hand at the time. In March 1877, Linderman authorized the melting of 12,359 twenty-cent pieces at Carson City. This included almost the entire mintage from 1876 (about 10,000) and created one of the great American numismatic rarities.

But wait—it gets better! The coin proved unpopular and became one of the shortest-lived of all coin series because the two pieces were immediately confused. At 22 millimeters, the twenty-cent piece was only slightly smaller than the quarter at 24.3 millimeters, and the two pieces had near-identical obverses. Mistakes in change-making were widespread. Imagine trying to pay for coffee and nobody can tell your coins apart!

Here’s the treasure hunting twist: Fewer than two dozen are known; one sold at auction for $870,000 in 2022, and numismatist Michele Orzano suggests that the few survivors were souvenirs obtained by visitors to the mint. So the only reason these coins exist today is because some tourists pocketed a few as keepsakes before the government melted the rest!

The authentication feature is pure numismatic genius: All 1876-CC Twenty Cent pieces show doubling of the word “LIBERTY” on the scroll across the shield on the coin’s obverse. This makes it easy to detect 1876 Philadelphia coins with fraudulently added mintmarks. Even the U.S. Mint accidentally created their own anti-counterfeiting feature!

The 20 cent coin offers a host of numismatic and financial challenges. The indisputable series key is the 1876-CC, which had a mintage of only 10,000 — most of which were melted. Today the 1876-CC 20 cent coin less than 20 survivors in all grades. When the government tried to erase history, collectors turned those “mistakes” into some of America’s most valuable coins!

 

7. The Wartime Wonder: 1943-D Bronze Cent (Unique!)

Record Price: $840,000 (PCGS MS64 Brown, Heritage Auctions 2021)

This is the penny that broke all the rules during America’s darkest hour! Only a single example is known of the 1943-D Bronze Cent, making it literally one-of-a-kind. The bronze coin was a mistake that should have been struck in zinc-coated steel. It was created by accident in 1943 at a time when copper was an essential material for wartime goods.

Here’s the spy novel backstory: The story of this unique Cent is shrouded in mystery and speculation. The 1943D Bronze cent was owned by a former Denver Mint employee who is believed to have struck it. This coin has the strongest strike of any 1943 bronze cent. Speculation has it that the person hand fed a bronze planchet into the coining press, struck it twice to bring up the design, then kept it. Talk about an inside job!

The forensic evidence is pure CSI magic: There are zinc fragments on both the obverse and the reverse, which means that the dies were used to strike normal 1943 zinc-coated steel cents first. This coin literally carries the DNA of regular steel pennies on its surface!

The coin was kept secret for years. After the person died, the coin was given to one of his children, who in 1996, consigned the coin to Superior Galleries to be auctioned. Imagine inheriting what you think is just dad’s old penny collection, only to discover you’ve got the numismatic equivalent of winning the lottery!

Here’s the authentication hack every collector should know: A magnet will stick steel 1943 coins. A magnet will NOT be able to hold bronze 1943 pennies. Steel pennies weigh 2.7 grams. Bronze pennies weigh 3.11 grams. So grab a magnet and a scale—you might just be holding $840,000!

As the only known example of this iconic Denver Mint error and the finest-certified 1943 bronze cent from any U.S. Mint, this coin should rank as the most important and valuable of all Lincoln cents. When you’re literally the only one of your kind, you get to set your own price!

 

8. The Forgotten Key Date: 1804 S-266 Cent

Record Price: $661,250 (PCGS MS63 Brown, Goldberg Auctioneers 2009)

The 1804 cents are scarce in any condition. In fact, there are more 1799 cents advertised in a year than there are 1804, and a steady progressive rise in value can be noted.” – Charles E. McGirk, “United States Cents and Die Varieties 1793-1857, Part V,” The Numismatist, August 1913. That’s right—this “forgotten” date is actually RARER than the famous 1799 cent!

S-266, the only known dies. No other 1804 cent approaches this one in terms of its sharpness or Mint State status, giving this example particular importance for anyone attempting to assemble the finest possible date set of early cents. When you’re dealing with “the only known dies,” every single 1804 cent comes from the exact same die marriage—making this the ultimate one-size-fits-all rarity!

The Holmes pedigree adds serious numismatic street cred to this coin. The Dan Holmes collection was legendary among early cent specialists, and when it hit the auction block in 2009, this coin brought $661,250—proving that sometimes the quiet achievers outperform the flashy stars.

But here’s the mind-bending part: while everyone obsesses over 1799 cents (and rightfully so, with only one known in mint state), the 1804 flies completely under the radar despite being scarcer! Rich dark chocolate brown surfaces intermingle with dark steel and olive over surfaces that exhibit good natural gloss and traces of luster—this MS63 represents condition perfection for a date that most collectors will never even see.

The key date status of the 1804 cent is sure to result in considerable interest, and at $661,250, this specimen proved that sometimes the best-kept secrets command the biggest prices. When Charles McGirk noted over a century ago that 1804s were scarcer than 1799s, he was essentially calling the numismatic market’s biggest oversight—one that this record sale finally corrected!

 

9. The Great Controversy: 1852 Original Proof Half Cent

Record Price: $493,500 (PCGS PR65RD, Stack’s Bowers 2017)

The 1852 Proof Original Half Cent is one of the most controversial issues in the whole Half Cent series. To Breen and many other well-known Numismatists the very rare 1852 Proof Large Berry Half Cent is a restrike. However, because of the fact mentioned above about the earlier Large Berry Proof Half Cents being Originals, it has been a tradition to refer to the 1852 Large Berry Half Cent as an Original. Talk about numismatic identity crisis!

Here’s where it gets deliciously complicated: The one problem with this is that no one has been able to find an issue of 1852 that meets all the criteria of an Original. So we’re calling it an “Original” even though nobody can prove it actually IS an original. The controversy over this issue may never go away but many consider the 1852 Proof Large Berry Half Cent to be the Original.

The auction drama is pure numismatic theater: At the afore-mentioned most recent sale, the coin sold for $603,750 under the heading of Original, yet in the description it was also described as a Breen Restrike Series VII. Imagine paying over half a million dollars for a coin that the auction house can’t even definitively categorize!

But here’s the legendary collector story that makes this coin truly special: Mrs. Emery May Holden Norweb, one of the preeminent names in 20th century numismatics searched for decades for an example of this rarity. When one of the greatest collectors in American history spends DECADES hunting for a single coin, you know you’re dealing with numismatic royalty.

There are only five known (one damaged) examples of the 1852 Proof Large Berry Half Cent which is considered one of the classic rarities in U.S. Coinage. Whether it’s an “Original” or a “Restrike,” at $493,500, this half-cent proves that sometimes the biggest controversies create the biggest paydays. After all, nothing drives collector passion quite like an unsolved mystery!

 

10. The Classic Head Rarity: 1811 S-287 Cent

Record Price: $493,500

Here’s the coin that proves John Reich knew how to design a winner! The 1811 Classic Head cent represents the pinnacle of early American coin artistry, and the S-287 variety is among its crown jewels. 1811 Large Cents come with either “Normal” dates or as an 1811/0 overdate. It is possible to attribute these varieties by the reverse alone. The overdate has a raised, horizontal line below the E of ONE which is visible even on low grade examples.

The Classic Head series itself is a numismatic treasure trove, representing John Reich’s masterful redesign that gave American coinage a distinctly neoclassical appearance. The 1811 is particularly significant as it falls right in the middle of the Classic Head series (1808-1814), representing peak production quality during this transformative period in U.S. coinage.

What makes the S-287 variety special among 1811 cents is its place in the Sheldon numbering system, which catalogs different die marriages. Each Sheldon number represents a unique pairing of obverse and reverse dies, making variety collecting both challenging and rewarding. The S-287 designation indicates specific die characteristics that distinguish it from other 1811 varieties.

The auction record mentioned suggests this particular variety achieved $493,500, which would place it among the elite Classic Head rarities. This price point indicates either exceptional condition, extreme rarity, or both—hallmarks of the most coveted early American coppers.

Goldberg Auctioneers $89,125 • MS66 shows that even “regular” 1811 cents in top condition command serious money. When you factor in the specific die variety designation and potential superior condition or rarity factors, a $493,500 price becomes understandable for what must be an exceptional example.

The Classic Head series rewards collectors who appreciate both artistic merit and historical significance, making varieties like the 1811 S-287 true blue-chip investments in America’s numismatic heritage.

 

Summary

From $500K to $2.35 million—these 100 rare pennies prove that America’s most valuable treasures might be hiding in your change jar. Featuring minting errors, key dates, and condition rarities that transformed ordinary pocket change into life-changing fortunes.

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