Part II. Die Varieties:
Deeply-Punched Mintmark
Definition: Even in the same denomination, mintmark relief will vary from year to year and even in the same year. Relief will vary depending on how deeply the letter punch was driven into the die and whether the die face was subsequently abraded. Observed differences become significant when a general pattern of relief is interrupted by a distinctly different pattern of relief. Such a discontinuity was originally observed in 1987-D cents, where several dies have markedly deeper punch marks than the typical die. What’s especially unusual is that the letter outline is only slightly higher than the interior of the letter D. In other words, the interior of the letter is elevated well above the level of the field. It’s not clear if this phenomenon reflects the use of a peculiar letter punch or if a normal letter punch was simply driven more deeply into the die face. Since that original discovery, Jim May has found the same kind of peculiar mintmark in a small number of 1988-D and 1989-D cents.
Face-on and oblique views of a high-standing mintmark in a 1987-D cent.