Standards for United States Coins
The United States features a number of different standards which have been mandated by Congressional legislative action. The U.S. Mint system is responsible for producing the coins circulating throughout the country. Coins throughout history have been composed of various materials and inscribed with a variety of images.
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Values
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The United States recognizes six distinct monetary values of coinage as of 2009: pennies worth one cent, nickels worth five cents, dimes worth 10 cents, quarters worth 25 cents, half dollars worth 50 cents and dollar coins worth one dollar.
Images
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As of 2009, a number of images of former presidents are placed on the front of coins. Pennies feature Abraham Lincoln, nickels feature Thomas Jefferson, dimes feature Franklin Roosevelt, quarters feature George Washington, half dollars feature John Kennedy, and dollar coins feature a number of presidents in a series running from Washington through the entire list.
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Minting
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Each U.S. coin is marked to identify the mint in which it was produced. Philadelphia coins are stamped with a "P," Denver coins are marked with a "D," New Orleans coins bear an "O" and West Point coins have a "WS."
Composition
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United States coins are made of a variety of metals. Pennies are composed of 95 percent copper and five percent zinc. Nickels are 75 percent copper and 25 percent zinc. Dimes, quarters and half dollars are 91.67 percent copper and 8.33 percent nickel. Dollar coins are 77 percent copper, 12 percent zinc, seven percent manganese and four percent nickel.
Edges
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The edge of United States coins are generally imprinted with some sort of pressing. Dimes, quarters and half dollars are printed with lines called reeds. Dollar coins are inscribed with the year and location of minting as well as "E Pluribus Unum" and "In God We Trust." Pennies and nickels have no imprinting.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit US Mint; Public Domain
