Wednesday, May 29, 2013

1989-S Proof Cent

Have a 1989 proof cent and want to know its value?

First time ever finding an American proof cent in my change. As you may know proof coins are sold directly to collectors in sealed containers. So how is it possible to find a proof coin in your change? Well I have a theory.


1989 has some of the most valuable proof coins of the 1980s. Currently a 1989-s Proof-65 cent is about $10.00 while the other years are $5.00 or less. Someone probably bought a bunch of 1989 proof sets broke them open and submitted the best ones for grading. This one has some dents and scratches, not to mention more fingerprinting than Amanda Bynes. Not worthy of grading and with little margin for profit they tossed it into a roll and just went to the bank and deposited them for face value.

Some may think a kid must have busted open the set to buy stuff but these days kids do not bother with pennies and a poor person probably would sell it as a set on eBay if they needed money. Either way it has now circulated and lost most of its value. Still it is a low mintage cent and proof so it retains more value than a regular strike.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 1 Cent Proof / United States
Year: 1989-S
Mintage: 3,220,194
Metal: 97.5% Zinc, 2.5% Copper
Value: $0.30 in Proof-12, (if such a silly grade even exists)

This is suppose to be Canadian Wednesday but both Canadian coins (1998 cent, 2008 dime) I found were repeats so I went with this cooler coin instead.

Do you have a cent and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

2 dollars worth, for Comments/Questions click here.:

Anonymous said...

lol @ the amanda reference. Still a beautiful coin though!

Man said...

Thanks.