1816 Matron Head Coronet Head Cent - Matron Head Large Cent N-2 Obverse Rim Cud

Description

After 1815, the one year from which no large cents are dated, the Matron Head design arrived late in 1816, and Newcomb N-2 documents a die marriage on which a rim cud developed between approximately the 1 o'clock and 4 o'clock positions on the obverse. The rim cud represents the loss of part of the obverse die's rim gutter, which appears on the coin as a raised interruption in the design rim that tracks the rim's course. Cross-referenced under the Newcomb attribution system as N-2, this variety belongs to the early die marriage catalog established by Howard R. Newcomb in 1944, which remains the standard reference for early copper specialists. The 1816 Matron Head design, attributed to Robert Scot or his assistant John Reich, introduced a redesigned Liberty head with a more mature appearance and a decorative headband inscribed LIBERTY. Die breaks on early copper coinage occur at a higher frequency per die than on later coins due to the relatively soft die steel used in the early nineteenth century, the heavy copper planchets that imposed significant striking force, and the lower precision of die manufacture before modern metallurgical standards. The span of the break from 1 o'clock to 4 o'clock covers roughly a quarter of the obverse rim. Early large cent die failures like this one document the mechanical challenges faced by the Mint during its formative decades, when die life was unpredictable and production schedules routinely accommodated die breakage as part of normal operations.

Cross References

• Newcomb N-2