Most of the Victorian Pennies you find these days are either very worn - or in individual collections. However this was not always the case. During the Pre Decimal era, even as late as the 1960's, you would often find a lovely Victorian Penny in your change. This is how my Grandfather started his coin collection. In fact he went one further. He would often go and ask for a bag of £100 worth of pennies and ha'pennies, and then go through them all collecting all the nice ones, and rare dates. There are a number of key dates out in the Penny world. There are also certain Dies that are extremely rare.
Even a low grade coin, like the 1843 penny below, fetched £31 on ebay in June 2010.One of my favourite eras for Pennies, is the period 1838-60. These were the young head copper coinage 'pennies'. These particular Pennies you did not find in your change in the 20th Century, as these rare demonetised on 31st December 1869, and accepted by the Mint at face value until 30th July 1873.
The rare dates during this period are 1843, 1849, 1856 and 1860. Other coins of this period can be picked up for a few pounds (in fine condition). It is worth noting that the rare 1860 penny relates to the copper version, not the more common bronze penny of the same year. The 1860 coins are all 1860 over 1859, and were not issued for circulation.
