How to Identify the Flying Eagle Cent

What Is the Flying Eagle Cent?

The Flying Eagle Cent was produced from 1856 through 1858 (with 1856 considered a pattern/transitional issue struck in limited numbers), marking the United States' shift away from the large, pure-copper cent toward a smaller, copper-nickel coin. It was designed chiefly by James B. Longacre, drawing inspiration from an eagle motif used on an earlier Gobrecht pattern dollar.

Obverse Design

The obverse shows an eagle in flight, wings outstretched, flying to the left above the date, with "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" arched around the upper border. The flying eagle motif gives the series its name and is its most immediately recognizable feature.

Reverse Design

The reverse displays the denomination "ONE CENT" within a wreath of agricultural products (corn, wheat, cotton, and tobacco leaves), a wreath style that would carry over largely unchanged onto the Indian Head Cent that replaced this design in 1859.

Size, Weight, and Metal

The coin measures about 19 mm in diameter, notably smaller than the large cents that preceded it, and is struck in an 88% copper, 12% nickel alloy, giving it a pale, slightly grayish-tan color distinct from the reddish-brown of pure copper cents.

Strike Characteristics

Because the copper-nickel alloy was harder than pure copper, the mint had persistent difficulty achieving a full, sharp strike on this series, so even lightly worn or uncirculated examples often show natural softness in the eagle's head, tail feathers, and the wreath details opposite the strongest point of the design; this should not automatically be mistaken for actual wear.

Telling It Apart from Similar Coins

The Flying Eagle Cent is distinguished from the Indian Head Cent that followed by its obverse design entirely: an eagle in flight versus a Native American-styled portrait of Liberty in a feathered headdress. It should also not be confused with earlier or later coins using an eagle-in-flight motif for different denominations, such as the eagle reverse of the Gobrecht Dollar, since the Flying Eagle Cent is a small, pale copper-nickel coin unlike any silver dollar.

Judging Condition

Grade is assessed primarily by the definition remaining in the eagle's wing and tail feathers and the sharpness of the wreath's leaves and ribbon on the reverse, while keeping in mind that natural striking weakness in these same areas is common even on well-preserved coins due to the series' known strike problems.

Authenticity Red Flags

Because the 1856-dated Flying Eagle Cent is a scarce and valuable transitional pattern issue, altered-date coins (typically an 1858 or other common date reworked to resemble 1856) are the primary concern; genuine 1856 cents show a specific style of numeral in the date and a small "8" that should match documented reference images exactly, so any 1856-dated example should be checked carefully against known genuine characteristics, ideally by a specialist, before assuming it is an original.