Memorial familiar enough to be label-free

If they named Monticello on the nickel, why didn’t they do the same for the Lincoln Memorial on the cent?

The thinking at the time of the introduction of the two coins was different, assuming that the Lincoln Memorial was much better known on sight. The lettering was added to Schlag’s nickel design by the Mint, but even with it there the design is often confused with other buildings.

Did the Mint strike some trial coins in shapes other than round during World War II?

Possibly, but I think you may be confusing the fact that the Mint struck coins in 1943 for the countries of Curacao (square with rounded corners), and for the Belgian Congo (Zaire) on six-sided brass planchets.

Isn’t there a U.S. pattern with silver on one side and copper on the other?

This is something of an early effort at clad coinage, except that there are only two fairly thick layers involved. Modern clad coins consist of a core with outer layers of a different metal bonded to it. In this case the copper was bonded to silver, and the pattern was struck with the regular dies for the 1865 2-cent coin.

I just noticed that your publication lists a different zip code than that for Iola, Wis. Is this a mistake?

One of the advantages of being a big business in a small town is that we have our own private zip code, a feature that not too many other firms in the U.S. share. In 1980, Krause Publications was assigned the 54990-0001 zip code that you will find listed in all of our publications. The village of Iola has a “radar” zip code – 54945 – that reads the same in either direction. Not too surprisingly many readers still use the Iola zip on mail addressed to us, which slows things down a bit but eventually gets to us. We still get an occasional letter with the correct 54990 crossed out by some zealous postal employee and replaced with 54945.

Address questions to Coin Clinic, Numismatic News, 700 E. State St., Iola, WI 54990. Because of space limitations, we are unable to publish all questions. Include a loose 44-cent stamp for reply. Write first for specific mailing instructions before submitting numismatic material. We cannot accept unsolicited items. E-mail inquiries should be sent to Answerman2@aol.com.