Needing to catch up on a number of tasks this weekend, I decided to take time out and go through my pocket change. While I like to examine my change, sometimes it is not possible. So I drop the coins in a small box and promise myself to search them later. The box was overflowing making it time to search.

First, I separate quarters. Quarters are easier to examine because of their size and the fewer errors I have found. I also fill up coin tubes so that my wife has soda money for work. While searching this small box, I found two 1976 quarter with the Drummer Boy Reverse designed by Jack Ahr. It still remains one of my favorite designs.

While searching the quarters, I found a 1992 Great Britain 10 pence coin. This coin is 24.5 mm in diameter and 1.8 mm thick with a reeded edge. A US quarter dollar is 24.26 mm and 1.75 mm thick with a reeded edge. Although the design is different, the size and the silver-like color could easily have this coin mistaken for a US quarter. My only problem is that even at the current exchange rate (it takes $2 to equal £1) the coin’s value is 20-cents leaving me 5-cents short!

Within the nickels, I was able to find a well circulated 1954-S coin. It is not worth much in its current condition, but it is nice to find a coin older than me and with the mint mark on the reverse.

When searching change, there seems to always be more to find within the little brown coins that many want to complain about and eliminate. For change searching, pennies usually yield some of the more interesting finds. Aside from the number of early Memorial reverse copper cents, I was able to find 1972-S and 1974-S cents. For someone on the east coast, finding San Francisco Mint coins in change is not usual.

Of course I found a few wheat back cents. The oldest is a well circulated 1941 cent. Two others, 1956-D and 1957, are in good to very good condition with a nice, even chocolate brown toning.

We cannot forgot our neighbors to the north. With the dollar about on par with the Canadian dollar, the prospect of making a virtual profit on finding Canadian cents induces dreams of past economic times. But this time, I found two 1979 and one 2000 cents. The 1979 cents have the modified tiara portrait, a smaller portrait from previous versions, and 3.26 grams of .980 copper. It contains 2.57 (US) cents worth of metals.

The copper-plated zinc 2000 Canadian cent, contains about one (US) cent worth of zinc.

If nothing else, it gave me a couple of hours to relax.

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