1793 penny fetches $1M at Florida auction By The Associated
Press
| January 8, 2012
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A one-cent copper
coin minted in 1793, the first year that the United States
produced its own coins, has fetched $1 million at a Florida
auction.
The Orlando Sentinel reports (http://thesent.nl/xZBfyw
) that the final bid by an unknown buyer for the coin was
one of the largest sales at the Florida United Numismatics
coin show and annual convention.
The newspaper reported that the 1793 penny
was sold at such a high price because it is rare and in
excellent shape, showing no wear on its lettering, its Lady
Liberty face or the wreath on its back.
Nearly 600 dealers of coins and currency
are at the show that runs through Sunday. It also features
Buffalo nickels, dozens of silver one-ounce pieces and coins
from antiquity, misprinted cash and Confederate notes.