Realcent.org

I've always enjoyed trivia. Why don't we have a trivia thread here? We need to set some ground rules. First, I don't have prize money to award, so this is just for pride, bragging rights, or whatever. I don't expect you to post your guesses to each question on the thread. You can keep your answers to yourself so we don't spoil things for others. The guide we use for the questions will come from the famous Redbook. Let's just say that with rare exceptions this will include anything from U.S. half cents to $20 gold pieces. Please feel free to add questions to the thread as you see fit. This one could be good for old and young collectors alike. Also, let's keep the answers in a separate thread from the questions so that a reader of a question doesn't immediately see the answer.

Question #1: During the 20th century there were four years where quarters were not produced. What are they? (remember- answers in a different thread. That thread is titled Coin Trivia- Answers). (Degree of difficulty: Low)

Question #2: What is the only denomination where coins were issued during each year of the 20th century? (Degree of difficulty: Low)

Question #3: What was the denomination which had the shortest duration of issue in the U.S.? (fewest number of years) (Degree of difficulty: Low)

Question #4: Thinking about U.S. coins (half cents thru dollars- not including gold coins, which should be in a different category) what was the only coin issued with a business strike (not proofs or specimen pieces but business strikes) mintage of 1,000 or less? Note that we are not including issues which are unique (i.e., 1870-S half dime). Not included are those which were believed to be created in an unauthorized manner (i.e., 1913 Liberty ("V") nickel where a rogue employee produced 5 coins). Those where the entire mintage was believed to have been melted down (i.e., 1873-S $1 coin) are not to be considered. Also, those where the mintage has been disputed (i.e., 1796 Draped Bust Half) are not potential answers to this question. Finally, one that had a similar problem such as those mentioned above where it didn't really circulate is not to be included. So think in terms of a coin issued somewhere between 1793 and now where there were only 1,000 or fewer business strikes and it was a real coin that actually circulated. The total number of different issues minted was over 1,000 so I don't expect you to know this one in your head. (Degree of difficulty: High).

Question #5: There were three times where one coin series began before another one ended. As an example to understand this one, if Buffalo nickels had been produced in 1939 (they weren't) it would have been an answer since Jefferson nickels began in 1938. What were the three times this occurred? (Degree of difficulty: Medium)

Question #6: What was the largest gap (in terms of years) where no coins in a particular denomination were produced. For instance, no dimes were made in 1922, but that is only one year. I'm looking for a minimum gap of 20 years where no coins were produced. There are three answers. (Degree of difficulty: High)

Okay, I've written 6 different trivia questions. Does anyone else want to chime in with one of their own? Please include it on this same thread and don't forget to put the answer on the thread which is titled "Coin Trivia- Answers."

Question #7- Many of you have seen the coin year sets which include one coin of each denomination issued in a given year. For instance, for the year 1971 you could have a set which included all six possible coins (penny, nickel, dime, quarter, half dollar and dollar). Many people get these for their birth years. Considering just the 20th century, which set would have the fewest coins? (I didn't ask which would be the cheapest to assemble- rather the one with the fewest coins) (Degree of difficulty: Medium)

Question #8- What was the only U.S. coin made of steel? (Degree of difficulty- Low)

Question #9- What was the only U.S. coin minted which contained manganese? (Degree of difficulty- Low)

Question #10- What was a coin that was frequently plated in gold and used as if it was gold (giving it a much higher value than it really had)? (Degree of difficulty- Easy)

Question #11- I'm going to celebrate my 1,000th post on realcent with the following- There was a three year stretch sometime in the 20th century where a coin shortage existed. All three mints produced coins, but none of them put mintmarks on the coins to help speed up production. Production occurred in huge quantities. What three consecutive years am I referring to? (Degree of difficulty: Low)

Question #12- What was the only coin ever minted which had a production of over 10 billion coins. Date and mint mark. (Degree of difficulty: High) (surprisingly)