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Hello there, I'm new to the forum today. I recently acquired a large collection of coins (which has now started me off on a collecting frenzy!) and there appears to be an 1882 penny without an H - I've heard these are rare but can often be mistaken. This coin is worn but the date area seems in good condition with no sign of an 'H'. Can anyone tell me if the above is true (about being rare) and whether there is anything else I can check to see which type it is?

Many thanks

DaveT

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It is indeed extremely rare

You could go to this site

http://www.tclayton.demon.co.uk/penny.html#bronze

under bronze pence - you'll find the following which may help:

The 1882 penny without mintmark is particularly rare (and not in Peck), but watch for worn coins where the mintmark has been worn away. A variety with the bar missing from the H is known. The following is a description of how to tell a genuine 1882 no H from an 1882H penny, as kindly related by the Penny specialist Bernie:

The identifiable features of the genuine non "H" 1882 penny are a flat shield on the reverse, NOT convex. Victoria has an apparent hooked nose, caused by a weak die strike in the area of the eyeball. The "R" and the "I" in "BRITT" should not be joined; a very small space should be visible with a magnifier. There is a tuft of hair protruding from the back of the neck, left of the ribbon knot. This tuft of hair is always visible on very worn specimens. The "H" variety can be clarified by examining the space encapsulated by the inner ribbon, as if the uppermost section forms a point in this triangulated section, then it is the common variety. The rare non "H" does not terminate in a point because of the tuft of hair mentioned above.

I should add that there are two types of obverse and reverse for 1882H pennies, and that the 1882 No H penny has the less common types - having these characteristics does not ensure that it is a No H, but having the characteristics of the other types confirms that there was an H even if worn away.

if you follow the link to the site there are pictures which will help further

You could post a picture here and we'll take a look

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Thanks. I've checked the link and the clues seem to fit. Camera won't take a decent pic of the coin so I'll find a scanner and hopefully post a pic soon.

Thanks again.

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Thanks again Custard, I've managed to get a hi-res scan and you can just make out 2 lines that will no doubt have been an "H" - impossible to make out with the naked eye or even a small magnifying glass! Oh well..

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Thanks for the update.

The H is sometimes poorly struck or worn or deliberately removed.

Hopefully, you didn't pay too much for it :)

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