1909 S VDB Lincoln Wheat Cent

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<IMG HEIGHT="1" SRC="http://www.stujoe.com/images/invdot.gif" WIDTH="25" BORDER="0">In 1909, the Lincoln cent was introduced. A few months after minting was begun, there was some uproar over the fact that the designer's initials, VDB for Victor D Brenner, were so prominent on the reverse of the coin. They can be seen on the bottom of the reverse, above the rim of the coin.

 

<IMG HEIGHT="1" SRC="http://www.stujoe.com/images/invdot.gif" WIDTH="25" BORDER="0">A change was decided upon and the initials were removed from the design and subsequent 1909 dated Lincolns do not have the VDB on the reverse of the coin. VDB was restored to the coin's design in 1918 but the initials were placed inconspicuously on the obverse where Lincoln's right arm meets the rim of the coin.

 

<IMG HEIGHT="1" SRC="http://www.stujoe.com/images/invdot.gif" WIDTH="25" BORDER="0">There were many millions of 1909 Philadelphia coins with the VDB initials made before the change occurred. However, less than 500,000 San Francisco 1909 S VDB's were minted. This small mintage in a popular series and the interesting story behind it have led the 1909-S VDB to be one of the most sought after Lincolns in the series.