1794 Liberty Cap Cent - Head of 1794 - CU-1C-1794-01R Cud

Description

Struck at the Philadelphia Mint during just the second year of United States coinage production, this 1794 Liberty Cap Cent carries a reverse cud. A cud forms when a section of the die rim fractures and the broken piece separates entirely, leaving a cavity that fills with metal during striking to produce a raised featureless mass at the rim of the finished coin. On a coin from 1794, when the fledgling Mint was still refining its equipment and techniques, die failures were not uncommon — early copper planchets were struck on hand-operated screw presses that subjected dies to inconsistent forces. The Liberty Cap design, featuring a portrait of Liberty with a Phrygian cap on a pole behind her head, was the Mint's second large cent type. Cataloged by Cuds on Coins, CU-1C-1794-01R documents die rim failure from 1794, when the Mint struck 918,521 cents. Die varieties on 1790s copper are tracked through the Sheldon and Noyes numbering systems.

Cross References

• CU-1C-1794-01R; none.

External References