Hobbies And Interests
Things You'll Need
Instructions
Procure a strong magnifying glass. Mint marks on US coins can be very small. Unless you have excellent eyesight, the mint marks can be difficult to see with the naked eye.
Look at the obverse of the US coin. This is the front of the coin, with the portrait. The mint mark is usually in the lower right area, near the date. Look for a small letter.
Flip the coin over and look at the reverse if the mint mark is not on the obverse. Some US coins have the mint mark near the bottom of the coin reverse. Nickels produced during World War II are the exception. Their mint mark is above the Jefferson Memorial.
Examine the edge if it is a Presidential dollar coin. This is the only US coin denomination with the mint mark on the edge.
Interpret the mint mark you find to determine where the US coin was made. If there is a P, it was minted at the Philadelphia mint. If there is a D, it was minted in Denver. S indicates San Francisco and W indicates West Point. Some older coins have discontinued mint marks like C for Charlotte, CC for Carson City, and O for New Orleans.
Be aware that there is an exception to the D mint mark standing for the Denver mint. On US gold coins minted between 1838 and 1861, the D stands for Dahlonega, Georgia.
Understand that some US coins do not have mint marks at all. These include some modern day Lincoln cents. US coins without mint marks were made at the Philadelphia mint. Since Philadelphia was the first US mint, there was originally no need for mint marks.
Be aware of the exception to the "no mint mark" rule. Between 1965 and 1967, no US coins had mint marks regardless of where they were minted. The Coinage Act of 1965 banned mint marks to discourage coin collector hoarding. It is impossible to know where US coins dated 1965, 1966 or 1967 were minted.