Flying Eagle Cent Values: The Short 1856-1858 Series

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Short on time? The essentials

• The Flying Eagle cent was struck by the United States Mint as a pattern in 1856 and for circulation only in 1857 and 1858, making it the shortest regular-issue small cent series in United States history.
• The coin was designed by Mint Chief Engraver James B. Longacre. The obverse eagle in flight was based on earlier work by Longacre's predecessor Christian Gobrecht.
• Composition is 88 percent copper and 12 percent nickel. Mass is 4.67 grams. Diameter is 19 mm. Edge is plain.
• All Flying Eagle cents were struck at the Philadelphia Mint. There is no mint mark on any issue, and no other mint ever produced this series.
• The 1856 was not a regular circulation coin. It was a pattern struck to demonstrate the new small cent to Congress and to lobby for passage of the Coinage Act of 1857. At least 634 pieces were distributed initially.
• The 1857 Philadelphia mintage was 17,450,000 pieces, the largest single-coin production at any United States mint up to that year.
• The 1858 issues split into three collectible varieties: Large Letters, Small Letters, and the 1858 over 7 overdate where an 1857-dated die was punched over for reuse.
• The hard copper-nickel alloy struck poorly opposite the eagle head and tail on the obverse. Strike weakness at those two points is the signature grading challenge on this series.

On this page

• The series in three years and two designs
• Why the large cent had to go
• Verified physical specifications
• The 1856 pattern and why it commands a premium
• The 1857 circulation issue
• 1858 Large Letters versus Small Letters
• The 1858 over 7 overdate
• Strike weakness at the eagle head and tail
• Why there is no mint mark on any Flying Eagle cent
• Copper and nickel melt floor: the trivial option
• The 1856 counterfeit and altered date fakes
• The case for third-party grading on scarce dates
• How to work through a candidate coin
• What your coin is probably not
• Flying Eagle cent FAQ

The series in three years and two designs

The Flying Eagle cent is the shortest regular-issue small cent series ever produced by the United States Mint. It was struck at Philadelphia as a pattern in 1856 and for circulation only in 1857 and 1858. By 1859 the design was gone and the Indian Head cent had taken its place.

The series marks a hinge in United States coinage. It is the first small cent, the first copper-nickel cent, and the coin that finally replaced the large cent of 1793 to 1857. Every American small cent since, from the Indian Head to the modern Lincoln, follows the size and general format that Longacre set in 1856.

Only two mints have ever struck United States one-cent pieces during this window, and only one struck Flying Eagle cents. Every issue is a Philadelphia strike, with no mint mark on the coin. The obverse shows an eagle in flight. The reverse shows the words ONE CENT enclosed by an agricultural wreath of wheat, corn, cotton, and tobacco leaves.

Why the large cent had to go

The large cent had been the workhorse United States coin since 1793. It was pure copper, roughly the size of a modern half dollar, and by the 1850s it was expensive to strike. When the copper price climbed past about 40 cents per pound, the Mint reached the break-even point where each cent barely paid for itself in metal and production.

The coin was also unpopular in commerce. It was not federal legal tender for large transactions. Merchants and banks were not required to take it. Worn Spanish colonial silver coins circulated widely alongside it. Congress and the Treasury wanted a smaller, cheaper cent that could also be used to redeem and retire the foreign silver still in daily use.

Mint Director James Ross Snowden and Melter and Refiner James Curtis Booth ran alloy experiments through 1854 and 1855. Snowden proposed a copper-nickel mix of 88 percent copper and 12 percent nickel to Treasury Secretary James Guthrie in July 1856. The alloy was hard, wear-resistant, and pale enough to look distinct from the large cent it would replace.

To lobby Congress, Snowden had Longacre prepare dies dated 1856 for a new small cent showing a flying eagle. The Mint struck at least several hundred of these patterns and distributed them to legislators and Treasury officials. That is the origin of the 1856 date that today anchors the Flying Eagle cent series.

Verified physical specifications

Every Flying Eagle cent shares the same measurable specifications, whether the coin is dated 1856, 1857, or 1858. A coin sold as a Flying Eagle cent that does not match the values below is a fake, a damaged piece, or an entirely different coin.

The 1856 pattern and why it commands a premium

The 1856 Flying Eagle cent is not a regular circulation coin at all. Congress had not yet authorized the small cent when the 1856-dated pieces were struck. Snowden ordered them made to show what a small cent could look like, and to build political support for the Coinage Act that eventually passed in February 1857.

At least 634 pieces were distributed in the first round. Two hundred went to the House Committee on Coinage, Weights and Measures. Four went to President Franklin Pierce. More were made available on request to other congressmen and Treasury officials. Snowden later struck additional examples for illicit sale to collectors and to trade for coins wanted by the Mint's own collection.

Because it was struck to lobby Congress rather than to circulate, the 1856 was a rarity from the first day. When collectors and the public learned of the coin after the regular 1857 issues appeared, the 1856 immediately traded at a premium.

Wikipedia cites contemporary sales at two dollars per coin by 1859. Two dollars in 1859 roughly equals seventy dollars today at general historical purchasing power. The coin left circulation and joined collector hands very quickly.

The 2018 edition of the Guide Book of United States Coins by R.S. Yeoman lists the 1856 at 6,500 dollars in Good-4 grade, rising to 20,000 dollars in Mint State 63. A Mint State 66 example sold at auction in January 2004 for 172,500 dollars. Prices in specific grades move over time and should always be checked against a recent certified auction record.

The 1857 circulation issue

The Coinage Act of February 21, 1857, authorized the new small cent and retired the large cent and the half cent. It also set the two-year window during which worn Spanish colonial silver could be redeemed at the Mint for the new coins. Regular strikes began in April 1857 and the coins were held pending public release.

The Philadelphia Mint released the Flying Eagle cent to the public on May 25, 1857. A temporary wooden structure was built in the Mint courtyard to handle the crowds. One counter paid out cents in exchange for old copper large cents and half cents. A second counter paid out cents in exchange for worn Spanish silver. Snowden reported to Guthrie that the demand was enormous, with more than a million pieces paid out on the first day.

The 1857 Philadelphia mintage totaled 17,450,000 pieces. That was the largest single-coin production at any United States mint up to that year. The scale made the 1857 the common date of the Flying Eagle series from the day of release, and it remains the common date today.

In average circulated grade the 1857 carries a modest two figure numismatic premium over its trivial metal content. Yeoman lists it at 30 dollars in Good-4 in the 2018 edition. Higher circulated grades command more, and full Mint State examples with sharp eagle detail move into the four figure range because the strike quality problem discussed below thinned the supply of well-struck survivors.

1858 Large Letters versus Small Letters

The 1858 issue is where the series gets interesting for the variety collector. Faced with continued die breakage in 1858, the Mint tried a new master hub with a slightly shallower relief. Along with the shallower relief came a modified letter punch for the obverse legend. That change created two visibly different 1858 varieties from the same year.

The 1858 Large Letters variety was struck first. On the obverse legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, the letters are taller and heavier. On many pieces the letters A and M in AMERICA touch or nearly touch at the base. This is the Large Letters variety, and it is the type most often found from early 1858 production.

The 1858 Small Letters variety was introduced later that year. The letters of UNITED STATES OF AMERICA are shorter, thinner, and clearly separated. The A and the M in AMERICA are spaced apart. Coins struck from the revised hub have the Small Letters, and Small Letters examples ran out the rest of the 1858 production year.

Both 1858 varieties are cataloged by every major reference and every third-party grading service. They price similarly in circulated grades. In the 2018 Yeoman Guide Book the 1858 Large Letters and 1858 Small Letters each list at 30 dollars in Good-4, matching the 1857. Higher grades and mint state examples price at a small premium or discount to each other depending on which is scarcer in the specific grade being compared.

The 1858 over 7 overdate

The 1858 over 7 is the star variety of the series. It happened because the Mint conserved dies. When production shifted from 1857 to 1858, one or more dies dated 1857 were repunched with the 1858 date rather than being scrapped. The result is an 1858 obverse with visible traces of the earlier 7 showing through the 8 at the last digit of the date.

The overdate is not subtle to a trained eye. Under low magnification the tail of the 7 shows in the lower loop of the 8. The finer the strike, the clearer the underdigit. Poorly struck examples can still be attributed by the shape of the top and bottom loops of the 8 and the position of any remaining flag from the 7.

The 2018 Yeoman Guide Book lists the 1858 over 7 at 75 dollars in Good-4, rising to 11,000 dollars in Mint State 63. That is a premium of roughly two to five times over the plain 1858 in circulated grades, and much higher in mint state. Any 1858 Flying Eagle cent bought as an overdate should be certified by an independent grading service, because the added-date and altered-date attack is a real risk on this variety.

Strike weakness at the eagle head and tail

The single most important grading factor on any Flying Eagle cent is strike quality at the eagle head and tail on the obverse. The design placed the eagle directly opposite the wreath and lettering on the reverse. When the two sides of the coin have high relief in the same plane, the press cannot force enough metal into both cavities at once.

The hard copper-nickel alloy made the problem worse. Copper alone flows easily under pressure. Nickel does not. An alloy that is twelve percent nickel resists flow enough that the eagle head, the eagle tail, and the tips of the wing feathers frequently come out flat on 1857 and 1858 strikes. Die life was short, and die breakage across the eagle was common.

The Mint tried to fix this in 1858 with the shallower relief hub that produced the Small Letters variety. The change reduced die breakage but never fully solved the strike weakness. By late 1858 Snowden had already directed Longacre to prepare replacement designs, and the Indian Head cent took over in 1859.

For the buyer today, strike quality is where the market rewards or punishes a coin. Two coins in the same certified grade with different strike quality can sell at very different prices. Full detail on the eagle head, full tail feathers, and full wing tip separation add a strong premium. A coin certified in a high grade but with mushy strike details at those points sells at a discount.

Why there is no mint mark on any Flying Eagle cent

Only the Philadelphia Mint struck Flying Eagle cents. San Francisco was busy with gold from the California mines and did not yet strike one-cent pieces. New Orleans, Charlotte, and Dahlonega focused on gold and silver. Carson City, Denver, and San Francisco small cent production all came later.

Because Philadelphia was the only mint, the Flying Eagle cent carries no mint mark. Any letter in the field of a Flying Eagle cent that looks like an S, D, C, or CC is not a mint mark. It is either damage, a die chip, a piece of foreign matter struck into the surface, or a tooling attempt to fabricate a fictional variety.

This single fact settles many auction questions on inherited pieces. Any 1856, 1857, or 1858 Flying Eagle cent claimed as a branch mint issue is either an error of identification or an altered coin. The series is Philadelphia only, no mint mark, without exception.

Copper and nickel melt floor: the trivial option

The copper and nickel in a Flying Eagle cent are essentially irrelevant to its market value. The math is worth showing because it illustrates how much of the price is numismatic premium and not metal content.

The 1856 counterfeit and altered date fakes

Because the 1856 commands a four figure to five figure premium and the 1857 and 1858 have similar physical specifications, the classic counterfeit attack on this series is date alteration. The most common target is the 1856. The most common source coin is a common date 1858 with the last digit modified to read 6.

Under low magnification the altered digit usually shows tooling marks around it, disturbed metal on the field beside it, or a slightly wrong shape at the top and bottom loops. A genuine 1856 has clean digit edges and undisturbed field metal at every side of the date. A trained grader recognizes an altered date by feel of shape as much as by any single tell.

Modern cast counterfeits are the second attack pattern. A cast copy of a genuine 1856 in copper-nickel can approach the correct weight and diameter, but cast coins usually shrink by a fraction of a millimeter as the metal cools. Edge finish on a cast is soft and rounded rather than sharp. Under magnification the details of the eagle feathers and wreath leaves look muddy on a cast, where a real strike shows crisp separation.

The 1858 over 7 overdate has its own added-underdigit fake. A common 1858 has an underdigit tooled into the last position to imitate the flag of a 7 showing through an 8. The tell is disturbed metal in the loops of the 8, and the underdigit sitting at the wrong angle or wrong depth compared to a real overdate.

Detection tips a knowledgeable collector uses on any candidate Flying Eagle cent:

• Weigh the coin on a jewelry scale that reads to two decimal places. A genuine Flying Eagle cent weighs 4.67 grams. A weight far outside 4.55 to 4.80 grams flags a base-metal replica or a plated core.
• Measure the diameter. A genuine Flying Eagle cent measures 19 mm. Cast copies usually run 18.6 to 18.9 mm because cast metal shrinks as it cools.
• Examine the last digit of the date under 10x magnification for tool marks, wrong shape, disturbed field metal, or a halo of thin metal around the digit.
• Confirm the obverse has no mint mark of any kind. Any letter next to the eagle or in the field is not a Philadelphia feature and points to alteration or damage.
• Compare the coin to a certified reference photograph of a known-genuine example in the same date before treating it as authentic.

These checks screen out most fakes. They are not sufficient at the price levels the 1856 and the 1858 over 7 command. Any purchase in the three figure range or higher should be certified by an independent grading service before funds move.

The case for third-party grading on scarce dates

Third-party grading is the mechanism that turns a suspected 1856, 1858 over 7, or fully struck mint state 1857 or 1858 into a coin the market will pay a numismatic price for. Certified grading pairs the coin with a printed grade, a printed authentication, and a tamper-evident holder that carries forward through every future sale.

On a series with a strong altered-date and altered-underdigit problem, certification does two things at once. It confirms the date is original and undisturbed. It also assigns a numeric grade, which the market then prices against recent certified auction records for the same date and variety in the same grade.

For common date 1857 and 1858 pieces in circulated grades, grading fees usually exceed the numismatic premium, and the raw coin is fine for a collection or a low-value sale. For 1856 pieces, 1858 over 7 examples, and mint state 1857 and 1858 pieces with strong strike detail, certification pays back many times over in the price the market will accept versus the price a raw coin can bring.

The rule of thumb: if the coin is a 1856, a 1858 over 7, or any Flying Eagle in a suspected mint state grade with full eagle detail, get it certified before selling. If the coin is a worn 1857 or a worn plain 1858, a raw sale to a coin dealer is usually the cleaner outcome.

How to work through a candidate coin

The steps below are the sequence a serious hobbyist runs on any Flying Eagle cent, whether the coin came out of a family collection, a bulk lot, or a dealer bin. Follow them in order before treating the coin as anything more than a common circulated 1857 or 1858.

1. Confirm the coin is a Flying Eagle cent. The obverse shows a full eagle in flight with wings spread and tail down. The reverse shows the words ONE CENT enclosed in a wreath of leaves. Any cent with a Native American profile obverse is an Indian Head, not a Flying Eagle. Any cent with a Lincoln bust obverse is a Lincoln cent from 1909 or later.
2. Read the date at the bottom of the obverse, under the eagle. Valid dates are 1856, 1857, or 1858 only. Any other date is not a Flying Eagle cent, is an altered coin, or is a modern replica.
3. Confirm no mint mark appears anywhere on the coin. The Flying Eagle series was struck at Philadelphia only. Any S, D, C, or CC letter in the field is either damage, a die chip, or an alteration.
4. Weigh the coin on a jewelry scale. A genuine Flying Eagle cent weighs 4.67 grams. A weight far outside 4.55 to 4.80 grams flags a fake, a plated core, or a badly damaged coin.
5. Measure the diameter. A genuine coin measures 19 mm across. A cast copy usually runs 18.6 to 18.9 mm because the metal shrinks as it cools.
6. If the date is 1858, check the letter spacing on the reverse of AMERICA. Touching or nearly touching A and M is Large Letters. Clearly separated A and M is Small Letters. Both are cataloged varieties and both are collectible.
7. If the date is 1858, screen the last digit for an underdigit. A visible flag or curve of a 7 inside the loops of the 8 indicates the 1858 over 7 overdate. Any suspected overdate should be certified before sale.
8. Screen the date under magnification for alteration. Tool marks, disturbed field metal, or a halo around any digit points to an altered date. This is the classic attack pattern on the 1856.
9. Do not clean the coin. Copper-nickel Flying Eagle cents show cleaning under magnification, and a cleaned coin gets a details grade rather than a numeric grade. Cleaning discounts the market price and cannot be reversed.
10. Submit scarce dates and varieties to an independent grading service before selling. A certified grade is the only price signal the market takes seriously on a 1856, on a 1858 over 7, or on any Flying Eagle in a suspected mint state grade.

What your coin is probably not

Flying Eagle cent FAQ

Sources

1. Wikipedia, Flying Eagle cent. Series overview covering pattern strikes in 1854 to 1856, regular issues in 1857 and 1858, Philadelphia-only production, composition of 88 percent copper and 12 percent nickel, mass 4.67 grams, diameter 19 mm, plain edge, design by James B. Longacre after Christian Gobrecht, 1857 mintage of 17,450,000 pieces, 1856 pattern distribution (200 to House Committee on Coinage, 4 to President Franklin Pierce, at least 634 initial pieces), 1858 Large Letters and Small Letters varieties, 1858 over 7 overdate, striking weakness at the eagle head and tail due to the hard copper-nickel alloy and opposing reverse design, replacement by the Indian Head cent in 1859, and reference pricing per the 2018 edition of R.S. Yeoman's Guide Book of United States Coins including the January 2004 auction of an MS-66 1856 at 172,500 dollars. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Eagle_cent. Checked August 2026.
2. Wikipedia, Indian Head cent. Successor series entry that confirms the Flying Eagle was replaced in 1859 by the Indian Head cent, with 1858 pattern strikes preceding the 1859 regular issues, both designs by James B. Longacre. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Head_cent. Checked August 2026.
3. Wikipedia, Large cent (United States coin). Predecessor series entry confirming pure copper composition, roughly half dollar size, production from 1793 to 1857, retirement under the Coinage Act of 1857, and 1857 large cent Philadelphia mintage of 333,456 pieces most of which never left the Mint. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_cent_(United_States_coin). Checked August 2026.
4. United States Mint, Coin Specifications. Official Mint reference for United States coin denominations, compositions, weights and diameters across historical and current issues. usmint.gov/learn/coin-and-medal-programs/coin-specifications. Checked August 2026.
5. Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. 31 CFR Part 82: Prohibition on the Exportation, Melting, or Treatment of 5-Cent and One-Cent Coins. Treasury regulation prohibiting the melting and bulk export of United States one-cent and five-cent coins for their metal content, with penalties up to 10,000 dollars per violation and up to five years imprisonment. ecfr.gov/current/title-31/subtitle-B/chapter-I/part-82. Checked August 2026.
6. Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. 18 U.S. Code section 331: Mutilation, diminution, and falsification of coins. Federal statute cited for defacement and fraudulent alteration of United States coins, including altered dates used to fabricate a scarce variety such as the 1856 Flying Eagle cent. law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/331. Checked August 2026.
7. Federal Trade Commission, Hobby Protection Act, 15 U.S.C. section 2101 et seq. Federal statute requiring imitation numismatic items to be marked with the word COPY. Cited for the treatment of modern replicas of Flying Eagle cents. ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/statutes/hobby-protection-act. Checked August 2026.

By the Harry’s Coins Editorial team. Last reviewed August 2026.