Anybody got an explanation for this? Large cent, trimmed to half cent size ... or something

mirabela

This is one of the weirder things I've come across. Anyone recognize something you know anything about here?

AnkurJ

Maybe it was struck on a half cent planchet? If so, worth big $$$$

mirabela

Good guess, but it's just a shade too small for that.

savoyspecial

appears too evenly struck to have been a wrong size planchet......cut down to be worn as jewelry piece perhaps??

Drizzt

cut down to small cent size? Still had copper left over?

engraved

I saw something like this before. The large cent was cut down like this and then one side was engraved to be a stamp or seal. This may be the first step of making one of these seals.

jonathanb

The copperheads were a political party in the Civil War-ish time period. They used cut down large cents as membership symbols (copper head -- get it?). I've seen pieces like this one attributed to them. I've also see much higher-quality carving jobs attributed to them, where the liberty head was snugly trimmed to shape, not on a round-but-smaller disk as here. So the short answer is that I can't say anything definitive, but if you want to track down more info on the copperheads, you might be able to find something useful.

ProofArtworkonCircs

Copperheads was a term invented by their opponents identifying them as like poisioness snakes that struck without warning. I doubt that they would use that term themselves.

cladking

I've seen large cents made into machine parts and the like.

It looks like about the right size for an old type fuse.

dcarr

I've had a few of these in the past.
I believe there was a time when large cents were not legal tender, but small cents were still valid.
So some large cents were cut down to small-cent size so as to be spent. Note, of course, how "One Cent"
is still visible when a large cent is cut down.

MillerJW

That is very cool, how clean are the edges of the coin??? is it smooth or pointed ect...

pb2y

Test strike on the new nickel cent planchet. Wieght and
alloy would match the 1856 Flying Eagle Cent.




<< <i>This is one of the weirder things I've come across. Anyone recognize something you know anything about here? >>

FredWeinberg

It's a nice example of a 'cut down' Large Cent.

It's not a wrong planchet error........

mirabela

<< <i>It's a nice example of a 'cut down' Large Cent >>



OK, so is that a regularly occuring thing? Was that a common practice? Why?

Thanks -- this has been interesting to follow.

COALPORTER

Maybe it was cut down to work in penny arcade games ?

PerryHall

<< <i>Maybe it was cut down to work in penny arcade games ? >>



Seems like an auful lot of work just to play a game. Also, it would be too thick to fit the game's coin slot.

shorecoll

There is a collecting specialty of large cents cut down to use for all sorts of things, spacers, gears, etc. I don't know if any of those guys hang out here or not.

lordmarcovan

I had a 1570-something Elizabeth I English coin that I initially thought was a threepence at first glance, until I realized it was a sixpence that had been cut down like that. (Add to that the fact that I am not sure Elizabeth I even struck threepence coins).

But that was silver. The coin had probably been clipped, as was the case with so many thin hammered silver coins.

I have seen this phenomenon on more modern, thicker, nonsilver coins, though. I am not sure what it is all about. I gave a cut-down 1972 Mexican peso like that to somebody here on the boards.

Boy, that would have been cool if that were struck on a half cent planchet, huh?

With large cents, you never know. Ever seen the ones that were made into gears or piecrust tools or "buzzers"? I think I have one of those downtown in my antique mall case.