CU-1C-1801-05 Cud

Description

Fifth and highest-numbered cud documented for the 1801 Draped Bust Cent with the 1/000 fraction, this die break completes the known census of rim failures for a date that saw modest production of approximately 1.36 million pieces at the Philadelphia Mint. Five cuds from a relatively small mintage date highlights the challenging conditions of early American die production, where hand-cut die steel endured punishing mechanical forces from screw-press coinage operations. Each strike transmitted tremendous shock through the die body, and cracks initiated at the rim — the zone of highest stress concentration where the die face meets the retaining collar — propagating inward with each subsequent impression until a fragment separated entirely. The Draped Bust design required deep relief in both the obverse portrait and the reverse wreath, demanding higher striking pressure than shallower designs and accelerating die fatigue. The 1/000 fraction anomaly on this date adds a die-cutting error dimension to the cud variety, making specimens potentially attributable to both a blundered fraction die and a rim die break. Cross-referenced as CU-1C-1801-05 and cataloged by Cuds on Coins, this variety marks the upper bound of documented cuds for one of the scarcer early large cent dates.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Friscomint1793 on eBay
• CU-1C-1801-05
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References