PC-1c-1864-02R Pre-Cud

Description

The second documented reverse pre-cud on the 1864 Indian Head Cent L on Ribbon sub-type, cataloged by Cuds on Coins as PC-1c-1864-02R, records a second working die that developed a rim crack during production of this mid-year variant. With two reverse pre-cuds now documented on the L on Ribbon sub-type (01R and 02R), the 1864 date shows consistent rim failure across multiple dies for both the No L and L on Ribbon sub-types — four pre-cuds total across two sub-types, suggesting that 1864 production conditions were generally challenging for die rim integrity regardless of which obverse die variant was in use. The L on Ribbon sub-type, introduced when Longacre added his initial to the ribbon behind the Indian Head portrait, required new obverse dies to be produced mid-year, and these freshly manufactured dies would have entered service alongside reverse dies that may have already been accumulating wear. Pre-cuds at the rim represent stress fractures that develop progressively — initially as microscopic cracks that grow with each striking cycle until they become visible on struck coins as raised lines at the rim. The "02R" designation places this as the second cataloged reverse pre-cud for the L on Ribbon variant, building the die failure record for this historically significant sub-type.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Chuck Newman
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References