Penny for your thoughts? Better raise the price. The US Mint brought more than two centuries of penny production to a close last week, and the final coins off the presses could become a hot item among collectors. Some reports suggest those final five pennies, struck during a ceremony in Philadelphia, could be worth as much as $5 million each. Others say the numbers may be far more modest.
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The circulating penny was first issued in 1793, though it began to resemble our modern pennies in 1909. That's the centennial of President Abraham Lincoln's birth, and the year the US first put his now-familiar image on the penny.
The penny's last pressing took place on Nov. 12 at the Philadelphia Mint, but not without a special goodbye. The final five ceremonial pennies include a tiny omega symbol, a mark that distinguishes them from the day's larger batch of standard coins.
The last five pennies will not enter circulation, according to the Treasury Department. Instead, the government plans to auction them off. Details about the auction aren't yet available.
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That small omega detail is what has many collectors watching closely. Omega was chosen because it's the 24th and final letter of the Greek alphabet, symbolizing the end of the long line of pennies. The omega symbol is visible underneath the word Liberty on the left side of the Lincoln image.
One well-known appraiser, John Feigenbaum, told USA Today that he believes the very last pennies might reach $2 million to $5 million each as the bidding wars start.
"Collectors would go nuts for a modern rarity of business-strike Lincoln cents," said Feigenbaum, the publisher of rare coin price guide Greysheet.
Speculation about value varies dramatically, though. Other numismatists -- experts on coins and currency -- are far more cautious. Some speculate that the last few of the batch will likely sell for tens of thousands of dollars, but not millions.
Correction, Nov. 18: This story originally misstated the year of Abraham Lincoln's centennial. The 100th anniversary of his birth was in 1909.