The one cent coin is getting a redesign to commemorate Abraham Lincoln’s 200th birthday and the 100th anniversary of the Lincoln cent in 1909. The U.S. Mint announced the final designs for the reverse of the venerable one cent piece (often incorrectly called the “penny”) on 22 September 2008.
Authorized by Public Law 109-145, the four new designs celebrate the bicentennial of President Abraham Lincoln’s birth, as well as the 100th anniversary of the production of the Lincoln cent (penny). The new designs will be issued in approximately three-month intervals throughout the year. The first redesigned penny, which will honor Lincoln’s birth and early childhood, will be put into circulation on February 12, 2009.
Four reverse designs will be released to celebrate the great statesman and U.S. President “Honest Abe” Lincoln. The Lincoln cent’s centennial is also tribute to the coin itself – the most collected coin in the world.
The four designs to be featured on the reverse of the Lincoln pennies represent four major aspects of President Lincoln’s life: his birth and childhood in Kentucky, his formative years in Indiana, his professional life in Illinois and his Presidency in Washington, D.C. The inscriptions on the reverse of the coins will be “United States of America,” “E Pluribus Unum” and “One Cent.”
The obverse (heads side) of the one-cent coins will continue to bear Victor David Brenner’s likeness of President Lincoln, introduced in 1909, and the motto “In God We Trust.” At the end of the 2009 Lincoln Bicentennial One Cent Coin Program, the reverse of the penny will feature a design emblematic of President Lincoln’s preservation of the United States of America as a single and united country.
A Lincoln commemorative silver dollar, authorized by Public Law 109-285, also will be released in 2009.
The designs for the cent are:
Birth and Early Childhood in Kentucky Reverse
Designer: Richard Masters
Sculptor: Jim Licaretz
Description: This reverse features a log cabin that represents Lincoln’s humble beginnings in Kentucky.
Formative Years in Indiana Reverse
Dresigner: Charles Vickers
Sculptor: Charles Vickers
Description: This reverse depicts a young Lincoln educating himself while working as a rail splitte in Indiana.
Professional Life in Illinois Reverse
Designer: Joel Iskowitz
Sculptor: Don Everhart
Description: This reverse depicts the young professional Abraham Lincoln in front of the State Capitol in Illinois.
Presidency in DC Reverse
Designer: Susan Gamble
Sculptor: Joseph Menna
Description: This reverse features the half finished United States Capitol dome.