If the government made them in gold each cent would be worth about $120 at the present gold price! You can prove that it is really a standard copper and zinc cent by weighing the coin on a gram scale.
What do you call a penny that looks like gold?
What you have is a plated cent that is commonly used in advertising promotions. Promoters give out gold plated cents because people are attracted to a cent that looks like gold. But there are no gold or silver cents, never were.
What is the composition of a 1976 Penny?
Brass is ~75% Copper and ~25% Zinc while the propper composition of a 1976 cent is 95% copper and 5% zinc. It is not unheard of for the metals to not be perfectly alloyed and my guess is that is what happened to your coin.
