It reduced the weight of the cent, causing it to be made of bronze, and also required a two-cent piece of the same metal.[9] The following year saw the initiation of the three-cent nickel and in 1866, the five-cent nickel (today simply known as the nickel) began production.[10] The two-cent piece, initially popular, saw declining mintages as the public preferred the smaller, more convenient nickel[lower-alpha 1] coins.[11]