BOOK REVIEW: THE ENIGMATIC CENTS OF 1922

A cover-to-cover read of The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922 reveals the many years of research and organization that Tom DeLorey conducted to produce this monumental work. DeLorey addresses why the Denver Mint produced 1922 cents of inferior quality. He also introduces new early die state discoveries and updated terminology to describe the die categories for 1922 Lincoln cents.

DeLorey began his career as a professional numismatist in 1973 and has been working with 1922 die cent varieties since 1974. He mentions the dearth of information about 1922 cents after being freshly minted. The first account he found was in the published notes of the New York Numismatic Club (NYNC) from September 1925. NYNC member Howland Wood had spent several months tracking the Lincoln cents he had observed on the East coast. No 1922 cents had met his eyes! (DeLorey, The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922, p. 29).

Delorey credits many people for helping to produce his fine work, including Roger Burdette, the late David W. Lange, and Len Augsburger. Burdette supplied primary source mint documents pertinent to DeLorey's research. Lange helped DeLorey understand the role of penny boards in numismatics. Coincidentally, I remember that Lange gave us updates on his coin collecting board research during our New Jersey Numismatic Society Zoom meetings in 2021 and 2022. Augsburger helped DeLorey examine the Denver Mint's Record of Coinage Dies volume for the years 1911-1925, available on the Newman Numismatic Portal. (Enigmatic Lincoln Cents, p. 57)

Tom's passion for 1922 die varieties and die pairings is evident. He does a masterful job of giving credit to and gently critiquing early experts on 1922 cents such as Maurice D. Scharlack and Alan D. Craig. My favorite parts of DeLorey's book were Chapter Two: The Traditional Knowledge About 1922-D Cents, Chapter Three: The Hobby Reacts to the 1922-Dated Cent, and Chapter Four: The 1922 Cent Varieties Get Recognized. I love reading about the history of these intriguing coins! DeLorey, who notes that his book adds to and updates the canon of research on 1922 cents, has produced an invaluable resource for future experts on 1922 cents.

This text has beautiful obverse and reverse images of 1922 cents in various conditions and grades. Despite lacking an index and a bibliography, the book is written in an engaging style, like you are having a cup of coffee with the author in the kitchen. A chapter on buying tips for 1922 cents would have been welcome as well. Appendices A and B are wonderful references for identifying 1922 cent die characteristics, traditional die varieties and new die varieties.

Even if you don't collect Lincoln cents, DeLorey's book is worth reading for the spellbinding story about the minting of 1922 cents in Denver. You also get an inside look at how U.S. mints operated in the early 1920s. As DeLorey states, "The cents of 1922 are strange and magical things." (Enigmatic Lincoln Cents, p. 102).

Postscript: Purchasing My Own 1922 No D Strong Reverse Lincoln Cent

Reading DeLorey's book brought back fond childhood memories of the excitement I had looking through wheat cents for early dates and mint marks. His volume also piqued my interest in buying a 1922 No D Strong Reverse Lincoln cent for my modest coin collection. When I was a kid, I remember being puzzled by the mysterious 1922 Plain Lincoln Cent.

I looked at a large number of 1922 No D Strong Reverse cents online in grades VG8 to MS64. Eventually, I purchased a PCGS F15 1922 No D Strong Reverse cent with a CAC sticker. I like the nice, even brown color of my coin and the contrast between a mushy obverse and a strong reverse. I was thrilled to get my coin in the mail from Northeast Numismatics!

 

Note: Thanks to Chris Clements of Northeast Numismatics for giving me permission to use the company's obverse and reverse images of my 1922 Lincoln cent to accompany this article.

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
NEW BOOK: THE ENIGMATIC LINCOLN CENTS OF 1922 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n50a03.html)

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