How Much Is a 1957-D Wheat Penny Worth?

The United States Mint in Denver, Colorado produced more than 1.05 billion 1957-D Lincoln pennies. They can be identified by the small "D" mint mark below its date. This was one of the last years the pennies were minted, and coins in excellent condition can fetch thousands of dollars. If you have a 1957 wheat penny, here is what you need to know to assess it's value.

History of the Lincoln Cent

The United States first produced Lincoln cents in 1909 to mark the 100th anniversary of President Lincoln's birth. In 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt recruited Victor David Brenner to help overhaul the United States coinage system. Brenner's task was to create a new design for the penny while Augustus Saint-Gaudens redesigned the ten-dollar and twenty-dollar gold coins. Bella Lyon Pratt received the assignment to redesign the $2.50 and $5 gold coins. These artists rounded out what is commonly known as the Renaissance of American Coinage.

A plaque of President Lincoln that displayed in Brenner's studio inspired President Roosevelt to select Lincoln as a subject for American coinage. This plaque served as a basis for Brenner's initial design. The Lincoln penny features a profile view of President Lincoln from the shoulders up, with IN GOD WE TRUST above the head, LIBERTY to the left, and the date and mint mark to the right.

The reverse features two stalks of wheat aligned on either side. E PLURIBUS UNUM arcs across the top, ONE CENT is in the center, and UNITED STATES OF AMERICA is directly beneath that. Brenner placed his trio of initials (V. D. B.) on the bottom of the reverse of the original 1909 issue. Using all three of his initials resulted in outrage among traditional coin designers at the mint. After a short iteration of minting, the dies were modified and the initials were removed.

Grading Considerations

Most collectors will be able to find circulated Lincoln pennies in Very Fine to Extra Fine condition, mainly because the wheat stalk reverse design was replaced with the Lincoln Memorial design in 1959, and as is always the case, the public began to remove the "old" design from circulation to save it for future generations. However, many of these older coins became accumulations stored inside jars and cans. Be careful when purchasing these coins to ensure they don't have damage from improper storage.

The hoarding of coins also yielded significant quantities of uncirculated 1957-D Lincoln pennies, as the coin-collecting community was also in a "roll collecting" mentality during this time. Although the mintage for this particular issue exceeded one billion coins, most of its uncirculated coins are usually well struck with full details.

Value of a 1957-D Wheat Penny

A collector of limited means can reasonably obtain uncirculated examples with full mint-red color up through MS-66 Red. An average uncirculated specimen (MS-63) will cost about seventy-five cents. The highest grade that a third-party certification service has ever issued to a 1957-D Lincoln cent is MS-67+Red (PCGS), and that coin sold for $2,640 in August 2018 at a Stack's Bowers auction. Unfortunately, higher grades are elusive because the bulk handling of coins at the Denver mint resulted in all coins having some minuscule bag marks.

You can purchase problem-free circulated examples of the 1975-D wheat penny for approximately 10 to 15 cents. For grades of MS-66 and higher, the coin must be graded by one of the top third-party certification services, such as NGC or PCGS.

Top 10 Auction Records of the 1957-D Wheat Penny

A search of over eighteen years of auction records from Bowers & Merena, David Lawrence Rare Coins, eBay, Great Collections, Heritage Auctions, and Stack's Bowers shows close to 1,000 1957-D Lincoln pennies auctioned.

1. $4,945 November 2007; David Lawrence Rare Coins; MS67(PCGS)
2. $4,428 August 2007; Bowers & Merena; MS67(PCGS)
3. $4,370 July 2008; Stack's; MS64(PCGS)
4. $4,313 May 2005; Heritage Auctions; MS67(PCGS)
5. $4,025 January 2009; Heritage Auctions; MS67(PCGS)
6. $3,995 June 2015; Heritage Auctions; MS67+(PCGS)
7. $3,910 December 2005; Bowers & Merena; MS67(PCGS)
8. $3,738 April 2010; Heritage Auctions; MS67(PCGS)
9. $3,738 December 2008; Heritage Auctions; MS67(PCGS)
10. $3,738 April 2006; Heritage Auctions; MS67(PCGS)

Varieties of the 1957-D Wheat Penny

With over one billion 1957-D Lincoln cents produced at the Denver mint facility, one would expect multiple die varieties in this issue. However, die varieties experts John Wexler, Kevin Flynn, and Billy G. Crawford have only identified four varieties. These varieties are classified as minor and add only a small premium in value over a non-variety specimen.

• Doubled Die Obverse; Catalog ID: CDDO-001
  This variety exhibits a nice doubling on the letters of LIBERTY and the motto. Additionally, a repunched mintmark is shifted directly to the south.
• Doubled Die Obverse; Catalog ID: CDDO-002
  The second variety exhibits very minor doubling and notching on the letters LIBERTY, the numeral “9,” and the date.
• Doubled Die Obverse; Catalog ID: CDDO-003
  This variety is also an example of an extremely small doubling of the word LIBERTY and evidences some doubling on the numerals “9” and “7” in the date.
• Doubled Die Obverse; Catalog ID: CDDO-004
  The final variety is extremely hard to identify due to only one diagnostic. Look for an extra eyelid to the southeast of the dominant eyelid.

As more research and investigation are accomplished, more varieties will undoubtedly be found. Therefore, keep a sharp lookout for the newest die variety of the 1957-D Lincoln cent.