1862 Indian Head Cent Capped Die (Deep Cap)

Description

A deep capped die error on this 1862 Indian Head cent. A capped die forms when a previously struck coin fails to eject from the press and adheres to the upper (hammer) die. Subsequent blanks are then struck against the stuck coin rather than the die itself, producing a coin with one normal side (from the lower die) and one incuse, mirror-image impression (from the stuck coin acting as a new die face). With each successive strike the stuck coin is driven further onto the die, its edges curling upward to form a deep bowl — the characteristic "cap" shape. This specimen is a late-stage deep cap: the incuse reverse shows a ghostly, spread impression of ONE CENT with the wreath nearly obliterated, and the cap walls rise significantly above the coin's face, visible in profile as a bowl-shaped disc. The 1862 Indian Head cent was struck during the Civil War, when copper-nickel cents were hoarded and the Mint ran dies hard to meet demand — conditions that increased the likelihood of ejection failures. Deep caps on Indian Head cents are rare survivors; most were caught by quality control or destroyed in the die-clearing process.