Expert: Joe Hylas - 2/3/2009

Question
Hi Joe, I have a strange penny. The whole front side is missing and recessed. The recessed area is silver in color. The back side is intact. Is this a misprint or counterfeit?
Thanks, Debbie

Answer
Hi debbie,
I can only guess hwat it is since I can not inspect it.  Obviously, there is no date on it but since you said the"recessed area" is silver in color, I am leaning toward it being 1982 or later.  Since 1982, the pennies are zinc with a copper coating which would explain the silver color in the recessed area.
It is possible that someone machined the cent and hollowed it out.  Sometimes this is done for magic tricks.  A cent is hollowed out and a dine is thinned to fit into the cent.  Hence when you turn the coin over, it can "magically" change from 1 cent to 10 cents.

Just a guess on my part but maybe you should have a coin dealer look at it for you to be sure.

I hope this helped in some way.

Regards
Joe Hylas
www.AllCoins.US
Omega Precious Metals