Lincoln Cents - Memorial Reverse, Proof

Lincoln Memorial proof cents were first struck in 1959 with the debut of the new reverse motif by Frank Gasparro showcasing the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. Proof Lincoln Memorial cents are popular with numismatists and are often included in regular date-and-mintmark collections of the series. While the first proofs of the series were struck at the Philadelphia Mint in 1959, proof production shifted to the San Francisco Mint in 1968 following a three-year moratorium on proof coinage spanning from 1965-67 during a severe coin shortage. With the first San Francisco proofs in 1968 came the debut of "S"-mint proof Lincoln cents.

There are a few notable Lincoln Memorial proof varieties, including the 1979-S and 1981-S Type I and Type II proofs. The 1979-S Type I "S" mintmark has a blobby appearance while the Type II shows a more clearly defined "S". The 1979-S Type II "S" constitutes the 1981-S Type I "S", with the 1981-S Type II "S" showing a very clear "S" with bulbous serifs. As for great rarities, there are few among the Lincoln Memorial proofs that come close to the fame of the 1990 no-S proof, a coin that spawned many headlines in the early 1990s and is considered a popular and rare modern-era proof error. Production of Lincoln Memorial proofs ended in 2008 with the closure of the series.