Rare Henning Jefferson nickel sells for $425 online - do you have one in your spare change?
A NICKEL featuring third US President Thomas Jefferson has sold for more than $400 online.
When it comes to Jefferson nickels in general, not many of them will hold a lot of value unless highly graded.
This is in part due to the mintage volume for each year being quite high.
For example, you may only find a few in the circulated series with mintages under five million.
But the Henning Jefferson nickel is a different type of mint.
The name comes from Erial, New Jersey, native Francis LeRoy Henning - who was a counterfeiter.
The Henning Jefferson coin was part of one of his schemes in the 1900s.
Various experts believe that Mr Henning made 500,000 counterfeit nickels – with the years engraved said to be 1939, 1944, 1946, 1947, and 1953.
About 100,000 are said to have made it into circulation.
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While these are counterfeit, some of these have picked up interest amongst collectors online recently.
This is likely because of the iconic history behind it.
The one in the eBay listing, with the year 1939 engraved, sold for $425 after 35 bids.
In particular, there is a crack featured on the lower part of the letter “R” in the word “PLURIBUS,” which can be found on the top of the reverse.
The same seller, “the_coin_look,” sold a 1939 Henning Jefferson nickel for just over $400 recently as well.
Meanwhile, Henning Jefferson nickels are typically worth between $20 and $90 depending on the condition, according to Chad Eicher, owner of Metal Pursuits.
But make sure you keep in mind that possession of counterfeit coins with “fraudulent intent” is illegal under federal law.
What is your spare change worth?
Know that your nickels might not be the only coins that could be worth a serious mint.
You’ll want to check your change for rare dimes, half dollars, Lincoln pennies, quarters, others because some of these coins might sell for thousands.
The most valuable coins are usually those with a low mintage or an error, as they're deemed the most valuable by collectors.
To check out if your coins are worth anything on eBay, search the full name, select the "sold" listing and then toggle the search to "highest value.”
It will give you an idea of the amount of money that the coin is going for.
You can either choose to sell the coin on eBay or through a specialist site such as Coinappraiser or USA Coin Book.
For more on counterfeit coins in general, we reveal how to spot them.
We've explained the Lincoln VDB, 1992, and 1914 pennies and why they are so valuable.
Read More on The US Sun
We’ve also explained the state quarters.
Plus, we show you how to find rare coins including ones featuring Lincoln.
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