10 Pennies Fetch More Than $1M at Auction

Ten pennies from early last century sold for the equivalent of more than 110 million modern pennies at an auction in California Sunday. Auction house GreatCollections says the pennies were "specially struck proof coins made for collectors by the United States Mint in Philadelphia in the early years of the Lincoln cents," per KTLA. "All are still in pristine, mint red condition and sold for a combined total of $1,113,174," the auction house said.

The Lincoln penny, designed by Lithuanian immigrant Victor D. Brenner, was released in 1909 as a successor to the Indian Head penny, which was first produced in 1859. The auction house says a 1909 Lincoln penny sold for $365,625 Sunday, the Sacramento Bee reports. Another four pennies from between 1909 and 1915 sold for more than $100,000 each. The Bee notes that 1909 Lincoln pennies have long sold for above face value: When they were released on Aug. 2, 1909, kids who could get their hands on them were selling them for more than 25 cents each. (More pennies stories.)