Nickel is the common name for a U.S. copper-nickel coin. It is worth five cents, and its official name is the five-cent piece. The current nickel has a picture of Thomas Jefferson on the obverse (front), and a picture of Monticello, Jefferson’s home, on the reverse (back). Jefferson and Monticello first appeared on the nickel in 1938. Redesigned nickels, with a new picture of Jefferson and an updated image of Monticello, began circulating in 2006.
The earliest U.S. five-cent pieces had a shield on the obverse and a 5 on the reverse. They were minted between 1866 and 1883. Nickels made from 1883 through 1912 had a head of Liberty on the obverse and a V (Roman numeral five) on the reverse. A nickel with an Indian head on the obverse and a buffalo on the reverse was minted from 1913 through 1938. In 2004 and 2005, the U.S. government issued special nickels to commemorate the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 and the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804 to 1806.
