1959 Penny Value: First Memorial Cent and the 1959-D Wheat Mule

A circulated 1959 or 1959-D penny is worth about 3 to 5 cents as of October 2026, and a typical uncirculated one about $1. It is the first year of the Lincoln Memorial reverse, but that milestone did not make it rare: 609,715,000 were struck in Philadelphia and 1,279,760,000 in Denver. The only real money is at the top, where PCGS's auction records show a 1959-D in MS68 red selling for $6,999 in November 2021, and in a single disputed coin: the 1959-D with a wheat reverse.

That last coin is the reason many people search this date, so it gets its own section below, with the honest picture of what is known and what is argued about. Everything else in the year is common, and a jar of 1959 cents is a pleasant thing to own but not a payday.

Quick answer

• A worn 1959 (no mint mark) or 1959-D penny is worth about 3 to 5 cents, as of October 2026. Typical uncirculated coins are about $1.
• 1959 is the first year of the Lincoln Memorial reverse, designed by Frank Gasparro. Production began January 2, 1959, per Wikipedia.
• Philadelphia struck 609,715,000 cents and Denver 1,279,760,000. PCGS lists a record of $6,999 for a 1959-D in MS68 red (eBay, November 2021).
• The "1959-D wheat reverse" is a single reported mule. It sold for $48,300 in 2003, and the grading services have declined to rule on it.
• If your 1959 penny has the Memorial on the back, it is the normal coin. A wheat reverse on a 1959 is not something you will find in change.

How do you value a 1959 penny, step by step?

Check the back first, read the mint mark, judge wear and color, then decide whether grading makes sense.

1. Turn it over. A 1959 penny has the Lincoln Memorial on the back, with the building and its columns. If a 1959 cent had wheat ears instead, it would be a different matter entirely, and we cover it below.
2. Read the mint mark. It is a small letter on the front, under the date. No letter means Philadelphia, D means Denver. San Francisco made no cents in 1959.
3. Check the metal. The 1959 cent is bronze, 95 percent copper with the rest tin and zinc, weighing 3.11 grams and 19 mm across. The alloy stayed this way until 1962, when tin was dropped, per Wikipedia.
4. Judge wear. Look at Lincoln's cheekbone and jaw, and at the columns and steps of the Memorial. Flat, smooth high points mean circulated.
5. Judge color. Uncirculated cents are graded red, red-brown or brown. Even orange-red luster with no spots carries the gem prices.
6. Look at the Memorial under a loupe. On a sharp coin you can see a small seated figure of Lincoln between the central columns. On a weak strike the figure is a blur. A sharp figure helps the grade.
7. Check for doubling on the date and lettering. The standard references list a few minor 1959 doubled dies and mint mark repunchings. Compare against photos, and expect only a modest premium.
8. Price from sold results for the same mint, grade and color. A raw coin is not priced like a coin in a PCGS MS68 red holder.

What is a 1959 penny worth?

Prices as of October 2026, from PCGS CoinFacts and common roll listings. Circulated coins from both mints are worth about 3 to 5 cents.

PCGS's commentary on the 1959-D, by Jaime Hernandez, calls it one of the best struck cents of the whole Memorial series from 1959 to 1973. The reason it matters is that high grades for 1959 to 1973 are hard to come by: MS67 or better is scarce for these years, while after 1973 it gets easier. That explains why a flawless 1959-D can reach four figures while a typical bright one is worth a dollar.

Why does the 1959 penny matter if it is common?

Because it marks a design change that only happens once in a century. On February 12, 1959, the 150th anniversary of Lincoln's birth, the Mint released the new cent. Wikipedia reports that Frank Gasparro's Lincoln Memorial design replaced Victor David Brenner's wheat reverse, with production starting January 2, 1959. Gasparro had never visited the Memorial. His initials, FG, sit small at the lower right of the Memorial steps.

The design held through 2008. In 2009 the Mint issued four commemorative reverses for Lincoln's 200th birthday, and the Union Shield followed in 2010. So a 1959 cent is the first of the type that lasted fifty years. For a collector, that makes the 1959 a "first year of type" coin, which gives it a little extra attention, but the mintage is huge and the price reflects that.

What is the 1959-D wheat reverse penny?

It is a single reported coin: a 1959-D cent struck with the old wheat reverse die, which should have been retired in 1958. Coin World reported that retired police officer Leon Baller found it in 1986, and CoinWeek says he reported paying $1,500 for it, with news of the coin surfacing in 1987. It is a mule, meaning a coin struck from two dies not meant to be paired.

The facts that are on the record, as reported by Coin World in 2019 ahead of a June auction:

• 1987: A U.S. Treasury letter said that after microscopic examination the coin was in their opinion genuine.
• 1993: ANACS found no evidence of counterfeiting, but returned the coin with a "No Decision", because nothing showed the U.S. Mint made it.
• 2002: The U.S. Secret Service counterfeit division reported no date alteration, no seams and consistent composition, and concluded it was a genuine mule.
• Grading services: PCGS and NGC have both issued "No Decision" results. The auctioneer describes it as Mint State 60+ brown.
• Sales: It sold for $48,300 at Goldberg Auctioneers in February 2003, and was offered again at the Goldberg Pre-Long Beach auction on June 2, 2019, with an estimate of $50,000 and up. Coin World's piece predates that sale. Collector forum posts put the 2019 price at about $50,000, but we could not confirm a result from auction records, so treat that figure as unverified.

CoinWeek adds that most numismatic experts believe the coin is fake, and that designer Frank Gasparro said no such mule exists and no test specimens were made. Two sets of authorities disagree, and the grading services have chosen not to rule. That is the honest state of play, and it is why you should treat any "1959-D wheat" claim with great suspicion.

Could your 1959 penny be a wheat reverse?

No, in practice. There is one reported coin, and it has a known history since 1986. If a 1959 penny from a jar has a wheat reverse, the likeliest explanations are all ordinary: it is an earlier wheat cent with an altered date, or a counterfeit made to fool buyers. Altering a date on a wheat cent is a classic trick.

The checks are simple. Look at the date under magnification for odd shapes, mismatched sharpness or tool marks around the last digit. Compare the typeface with a known 1959 and 1958. Then show it to an experienced dealer or send it to a grading service for an opinion. Do not pay a premium for an unverified "1959 wheat" listing, and be careful with anyone who asks you to.

Are there other 1959 varieties?

Yes, but they are minor. PCGS lists two doubled die obverse entries for the Philadelphia coin, FS-101 and FS-104, and for the Denver coin a repunched mint mark and a 1959-D/D/D, FS-501. The Lincoln Cent Resource also shows 1959-D RPM entries. These are specialist varieties, collected by people who build sets of Lincoln cent die varieties. They sell for a modest premium and thin sales, so check recent sold results before assuming anything.

Machine doubling, a flat ledge on the side of a letter, is the usual cause of "doubling" on a 1959 and adds no value. Our error coins worth money guide explains how to tell the two apart.

A worked example

Say you find a 1959-D in a roll. It is bright with orange luster, a few darker flecks near the rim, and the Memorial steps look slightly soft. You flip it to check for wheat ears. It has the Memorial, so you move on to the grade.

It is an ordinary Denver cent in about MS64 to MS65 red-brown or red. It is worth about $1 to a few dollars. The soft steps suggest a middling strike, so it will not reach the grade that earns four figures. Grading would cost more than the coin. Keep it as a nice first-year Memorial cent, or add it to a roll collection. If you wanted to chase the top, you would need a spotless, fully struck red coin and a PCGS or NGC holder.

Is it worth grading a 1959 penny?

Almost never. Fees at PCGS and NGC are charged per coin, and with shipping they exceed what a 1959 is worth below MS67 red. The math only works for a coin you honestly believe is flawless: full luster, even red color, a sharp Memorial and no spots or marks under a 5x loupe. Our coin grading scale guide explains what separates the top grades.

Common mistakes

• Thinking first year means rare. Nearly 1.9 billion cents were made in 1959 between the two mints.
• Believing a wheat-reverse 1959 listing. One coin is reported, and its status is disputed. Anything else is almost certainly altered or counterfeit.
• Calling machine doubling a doubled die. It is common and adds nothing.
• Pricing from the MS68 column. The $6,999 figure is for one coin at one sale.
• Cleaning the coin. It ruins original color; see should you clean old coins.
• Mixing up 1959 with wheat years. The wheat cents ended in 1958, covered in our 1958 penny guide, and the 1960 small-date and large-date varieties are covered in our 1960 penny guide.

How WorthPic reads 1959 penny photos

WorthPic runs on the newest and most capable AI model available, tuned for exactly this kind of identification. From photos of both sides it reads the date and mint mark, confirms the Memorial reverse, judges wear on the cheek and the columns, and estimates color. It flags the one thing worth a second look, which is a 1959 date paired with a wheat reverse, and says it is far more likely to be an altered date or a counterfeit than a genuine mule. It then gives an honest value range in US dollars with a most likely figure, explains what drives it, and says which extra photo would settle any doubt. It cannot judge an MS68, cannot see small spots, and cannot confirm a mule or a variety. It identifies and estimates. It does not authenticate, grade or appraise.

What to photograph

• The front and back straight on, in even daylight.
• The date and mint mark close up, with the light coming from the side.
• The Memorial and its steps close up.
• Lincoln's cheek and jaw at a slight angle, to show wear.
• For a bright coin, one photo that shows the true color without glare.
• Both sides, and the edge, if the reverse looks wrong for the date.

When to get it looked at in person

A worn 1959 or 1959-D needs no expert, and a dealer will buy Memorial cents by the roll or the pound. For a coin you believe is a top-grade red gem, PCGS or NGC grading is the only way to reach the prices in the table, and it pays only for a truly spotless coin. If you believe you hold a 1959 with a wheat reverse, do not clean it, do not alter it, and take it to an experienced dealer or a recognized grading service for a view. Expect a long and uncertain process. For the rest of a jar, start with what pennies are worth money and the wheat penny value guide.

Sources

• PCGS CoinFacts: 1959-D Lincoln Cent, Red: mintage, the $6,999 MS68 red record and the grade commentary.
• PCGS CoinFacts: 1959 Lincoln Cent, Red: Philadelphia mintage and the doubled die listings.
• Coin World: Controversial 1959-D cent mule heads to auction: the wheat reverse mule, the authentication history and the 2003 sale.
• CoinWeek: Classic US coins, the last wheat cent: the purchase price, the expert doubts and Gasparro's denial.
• Wikipedia: Lincoln cent: the Memorial reverse dates and the composition.
• Wikipedia: Lincoln cent mintage figures: business strike and proof mintages for 1959.