Part V: Planchet Errors:

Pre-strike Damage:

Definition: Pre-strike damage is any damage that occurs after blanking but before the strike.  Its appearance is quite diverse.  Planchets can be scraped, gouged, folded, torn, crimped, cut, and crushed.

In the case of copper-plated zinc cents, damage can occur before plating or after plating.

Part II. Die Varieties:

Omitted Mintmark

Definition: An omitted mintmark is one that has been inadvertently not been added to a master or working die.

In 1990 proof Lincoln cent was found without the S-mintmark. The Mint’s explanation involved a Philadelphia working die being inadvertently bundled with a group of proof working dies. However, this begs the question of why the die was not detected through the several subsequent steps involved in producing a finished proof die (i.e., frosting, polishing).

An estimated 3700 hundred coins were struck by this working die, with 145 being discovered and destroyed by the Mint. A census of those coins that did escape into the marketplace revealed only 300 examples.  So where are all the other 1990 “no-S” cents?

In 1982 a business-strike Roosevelt dime appeared without the P-mintmark.  Some coins show a relatively weak strike while most show a strong strike.  It has been determined that the “weak strike” was produced first and both it and the “strong strike” were generated by the same die pair. Most of these “no-P”  dimes were found in Ohio and it is estimated that the total production was approximately 75,000 coins.  This is the average output of a single working die.

Since a mintmark is easy to remove mechanically, this variety is relatively easy to fake. It is strongly recommended that if you are in the market for this die variety, have it looked at by an expert before purchasing it.

The image to the left is the strong strike, while the image to the right is the weak strike.

PART IV. Die Errors:

Die Deterioration / Die Deformation:

Die Deterioration:

Orange Peel Texture

Definition: As a die pounds away at thousands of planchets, the surface metal experiences microscopic plastic flow.  Over time, the surface becomes rough.  Radial flow lines, concentric flow lines, and an “orange peel” texture are names applied to various patterns of roughness.

Shown above is a 1988-P dime shows both an orange peel texture and radial flow lines on the obverse face.

Other Sites of Interest

PART II: Repunched Design Elements:

Other Design Elements

Many older coins show individual design elements repunched into the working die or master die. This action took place after the hubbing of the die. The image to the right shows a repunched star on a 1891, Dos Centavos from Argentina. Notice that the denticles next to the star are not doubled. If the denticles were doubled, this may have indicated that the star was actually on the master hub when the dies were made.

PART X. Wastebasket / Composite Categories:

Doubling:

Plating Disturbance Doubling

Definition: Also known as Disturbed Plating Doubling, this is a form of raised doubling that occurs only on copper-plated zinc cents.  It’s something of a hybrid between blistered plating and split plating doubling.  Tensile stresses that are generated next to the raised design during the strike cause the copper plating to lift up.  The result is a raised outline or silhouette next to the normal design element.

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American Numismatic Association – The leading organization for coin collectors. http://www.money.org/

Over Date; 1943 over a 1942 Date, Jefferson Nickel 

This over date occurred when a Jerrson nickel working die was first hubbed with a 1942 working hub and then hubbed again with a 1943 working hub. The P mint mark was then later applied to this die. The image below shows part of the two digit underneath the 3 digit in the date.