Expert: Dmitry Livshits - 4/7/2010

Question
I am a coin collector residing in Akron Colorado.
One of my friends brought me a Brown Bronze Lincoln one Cent.  There is no Lincoln head on this cent.
Both sides of this coin has been struck in the same way. First i thought it could be 2 coins pressed into each other, but there is no seam on the rim. Both sides of the coin is identical, with the words "ONE CENT" And "United States of America" under it with the 2 Wheat ears on the sides.   
Can you please tell me more about it, and also a idea of the value.   

Thank You Marius

Answer
Hi Marius,
I must regrettably tell you that this is not a mint error. It is impossible for a coin to be minted this way, unless it was struck on the reverse sides of a similar coin (in which case you would have mis-alignment of the two sides and obvious over-strike features).
This is an extremely well made "magic coin". There are common forms of this, which are novelty pieces and would be quite crude and also of an incorrect weight for a copper Lincoln cent. The ones made from genuine coins would have the normal details and would be struck rather than cast. Also the weight would be very close to that of a normal cent.
The good news is that such a well crafted piece does have collectible value. Nearly all have an obvious seam either around the edge or just under the rim (making one side look like a double rim). It would not be possible to tell when this piece was made, unfortunately.
A typical "magic coin" cent, when described correctly is worth just a couple of dollars. Some people do try to pass them off as mint errors, but it only ends up backfiring and causing them problems. Your coin, as a quality example for something like this, can sell for up to $20 with a good description.
Please let me know if you have any additional questions about it.
Thanks for the question! =)