1944 Lincoln Wheat Cent

About This Coin

The 1944 Lincoln Wheat Cent is a United States cent from the Lincoln Wheat Cents 1909-1958 series. In 1944, the Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco Mints struck 2,148,738,000 cents. The obverse features Abraham Lincoln facing right, the first real person depicted on a U.S. circulating coin and the reverse displays two wheat stalks framing ONE CENT, symbolizing American agriculture. Struck in a copper-zinc alloy that the Treasury said would include brass from spent shell casings, returning the cent to a copper-based metal; how much shell-case brass was actually used is debated. A few 1944 cents were struck on leftover 1943 steel planchets, the mirror image of the 1943 copper error. Struck in 95% copper, 5% zinc, 19.05 mm in diameter, with a plain edge. Across its variants, estimated values range from $0 to $1218K depending on mint mark, grade, and strike type. A notable auction result reached $408K in MS66 grade at Heritage Auctions. Designed by Victor David Brenner.