Expert: PAPAJACK - 8/28/2007

Question
This quarter has a 1992 on one side with and a 1997( i think- my daughter has the coin) on the other. it has the new head on one side and the old head on the other. Is this a gag? They are dated on both sides

Answer
Hello Jane,                                    

They are not rare and it is not an error coin.
I have experience with these coins and have seen them in Quarters, Half Dollars and Nickels. (I guess it’s the thickness that aides in the making of them). These two headed, or Two Tailed coins are Trick coins, sometimes called Magicians Coins.

All the ones I have come across are machined out on one side, while an identical coin is thinned and slightly reduced in diameter. The smaller and thinner half is then placed in the hollowed out half coin.
Sometimes done as a novelty to sell, to fool people on a coin toss, or a machinist apprentice practicing his trade. I have also heard of them being sawed in halves and glued together.

They may sell for .50 cents and up to $2 dollars in a shop. Again they are not rare, and are not in demand by coin collectors.

The modern process the US Mint uses makes it virtually Impossible for an HEADS (obverse) die to be matched with anything but a TAILS (reverse) die in the presses used to stamp out coins.

As information for any actual types of error coins "the Greater the error the Greater The Value" is the general rule, and it does have to be a Mint Error.

For information on true error coins look for the book "The ERROR COIN ENCYCLOPEDIA" by Arnold Margolis (not sure of the spelling).

It goes into detail about how errors have occurred at the mint.  Your Library may have a copy or it is inexpensive to buy.

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Thank You and Good Luck

PapaJack