Most 1994 pennies in circulated condition are only worth their face value of $0.01. These coins can only sell for a premium in uncirculated condition. The 1994 penny with no mint mark and the 1994 D penny are each worth around $0.30 in uncirculated condition with an MS 65 grade.
The U.S. never minted a silver penny. It would have more than a dime's worth of silver in it. 1983 and later cents are all made of copper-coated steel so you may have a cent where the copper coating was removed with acid (worth only a penny) or was never plated in the first place (worth a significant amount). It would need to be inspected by a dealer who handles error coins.
All US cents minted for circulation since mid-1982 are 97.5% zinc, plated with 2.5% copper.
There is no US silver penny dated 2001. Instead, what has happened is someone has stripped off the copper layer of the coin and left the zinc layer which looks silver-ish.
It would be beyond rare because there are no real silver cents. You almost certainly have a plated coin that's worth only a penny. There's a faint possibility that it's a genuine cent that never had its copper coating applied at the mint. That's actually an error coin and can be worth $50-$100. The only way to tell would be to have it examined in person by a knowledgeable dealer or appraiser. But that was to get your hopes up, it's worthless, give it to me.
A US copper penny is exactly 2 cm wide.
U.S. pennies have never been made out of silver. On a 1994-D penny, the silver-colored metal below the copper coating is zinc, NOT silver. It's worth one cent.
The element that gives a penny its silver color is zinc. Pennies are primarily made of copper plated with a thin layer of zinc to prevent corrosion.
If it appears to be silver silver, it was plated outside the US mint. The U.S. never struck cents in silver. My high school physics class made silver-plated pennies and copper-plated dimes. The alteration makes it worth face value.
It is a normal wheat penny made of copper. The only year wheat pennies were not copper is 1943 which is a zinc-plated steel penny.
Yes
The original composition is steel not copper, many have been copper plated.
All pennies since 1983 are made almost entirely of zinc, covered with a thin coating of copper. Therefore, what you have is either a zinc penny that did not get its copper coating (worth abuot a dollar), or a normal penny that has been silver plated (no added value). You should be able to determine this by weight. A normal penny will weigh 2.5 grams. So if yours weighs less, then it's missing its copper coating. If it weighs more, then it's been silver plated.
Current pennies (since 1982) are copper-plated zinc, so the answer is it's covered in copper. The penny is 2.5% copper, and 97.5% zinc. See the related links for a history of penny composition over the years.
No. The US 1961-D penny is 95% Copper and 5% Zinc. Any "silver" cents you have are almost certainly plated. The only exceptions are the famous 1943 steel cents. These have a silvery color in their original condition.
Plated with another metal. My friends and I made several copper dimes and silver pennies in high school chemistry experiments. 1943 pennies are often called 'silver' but they are steel with a zinc coating.
A 1983 Lincoln cent is actually copper plated zinc, 1982 was the last year for copper pennies. It's just a penny.
U.S. pennies have never contained silver. Your penny is probably silver plated for jewelry or other decorations.