1909-S VDB penny: mintage, history and how to tell a genuine one

The 1909-S VDB is the key date of the Lincoln cent series: San Francisco struck only 484,000 of them before the designer's initials were taken off the reverse. Because it is valuable, it is also the U.S. coin NGC reports seeing counterfeited most often, so a genuine coin needs an S under the date and V.D.B. on the back, both matching known diagnostics.

By the Coin Scanner team · Updated 2026-10-13

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Why the initials disappeared

The Lincoln cent went into circulation in August 1909. Sculptor Victor David Brenner, who designed both sides, signed the reverse with his initials V.D.B. in the space between the two wheat ears at the bottom. Officials quickly decided the letters were too conspicuous, and critics complained they looked like an advertisement. The Mint was told to take them off, and the rest of the 1909 cents were struck without them. The initials came back in 1918, this time in tiny letters at the bottom of Lincoln's shoulder on the front of the coin.

That quick change left two short runs of initialed cents. Philadelphia had already made 27,995,000 of them, enough that the 1909 VDB is easy to find. San Francisco, a much smaller cent producer, had made only 484,000. Those figures are the ones carried by Lincoln-cent reference listings; the Mint's own reports of the period did not split 1909 cents by design. Writing in COINage in 2020, Joshua McMorrow-Hernandez cited a PCGS estimate that roughly 50,000 1909-S VDB cents may still exist, a small number set against the many collectors trying to finish a Lincoln set.

1909 Lincoln cents compared

The table shows why counterfeiters target this date: a common 1909 VDB becomes a key date if an S is added, and a 1909-S becomes one if initials are added.

How to check a 1909-S VDB

1. Confirm both features. You need the date 1909, an S below it on the front, and V.D.B. on the back at the bottom center. Missing either one means a different, more common coin.
2. Check the S position. Mint marks were punched into each die by hand, so the S sits in a slightly different place on each die. NGC's diagnostic guide describes four genuine positions: the first is high, roughly level with the 9s of the date; the second sits about even with the bottoms of the 9s; the third is further right, under more of the 0; and the fourth is low and further still to the right. An S that matches none of the documented dies should be treated with suspicion.
3. Study the S itself under magnification. According to NGC, one S punch served for all San Francisco cents from 1909 to 1916, and on genuine coins it shows a small raised dot inside the upper curve. Reference books also describe parallel serifs, with a notch in the right-hand serif. These details can be soft on worn or weakly struck genuine coins, so a missing dot alone does not condemn a coin, but serifs that slant at the bottom, as on an altered example NGC illustrates, are a red flag.
4. Inspect the initials. NGC notes that on genuine coins the base of the D and the crossbar of the B are angled, and the letters often show slight strike doubling. Initials added later tend to have flat versions of these features. NGC also points out that the first of the four dies struck non-VDB 1909-S cents too, and some of those have had initials added.
5. Look for tool marks. Under a loupe, check the field around the S and the initials for scratches, a seam or disturbed metal, signs that something was glued or worked on.
6. Remember that some fakes pass these tests. NGC warns that die-transfer counterfeits, made using a genuine 1909-S VDB as a model, can reproduce the correct S and initials. That is why experts recommend certification for this coin.

Common fakes and alterations

• Added S: NGC names this as the main alteration: an S attached to a Philadelphia 1909 VDB cent.
• Added VDB: initials applied to a genuine 1909-S without them.
• Outright counterfeits: fully made fakes, including die-struck and transfer-die copies.

NGC ranks the 1909-S VDB first on its list of the U.S. coins most often counterfeited among the submissions it receives.

What affects the value

Every genuine 1909-S VDB carries a premium, but the amount varies a lot with grade (how much wear the coin shows), color (original red, red-brown or brown for uncirculated coins), eye appeal and whether it has been certified by a recognized grading service. Damage, cleaning or corrosion lowers value sharply.

For a first look, photograph both sides and scan them with Coin Scanner, which reads the date and mint mark and gives an estimated value range. Any estimate is only a guide; a coin that appears to be a 1909-S VDB should be sent to a professional grading service for authentication before you buy, sell or insure it.

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