1866 Shield Nickel - Rays - CU-5c-1866-05 Rim Cud

Description

Bearing the distinction of first-year-of-issue status, this 1866 Shield Nickel with Rays cud documents a die rim failure from the very debut of the five-cent nickel denomination in American coinage. The Shield Nickel, designed by James Barton Longacre, introduced the 75% copper and 25% nickel alloy that would define the denomination for over a century. The 1866 "with Rays" subtype features decorative rays between the stars on the reverse — a design element removed after just two years due to striking difficulties caused by the high-relief detail opposing the obverse shield. A rim cud represents the loss of part of the die's rim gutter: on the coin it appears as a raised interruption in the design rim that tracks the rim's course. The Shield Nickel series (1866-1883) marked a deliberate transition away from the tiny silver half dimes that had previously served as the five-cent coin, and first-year die varieties carry heightened significance as artifacts of this pivotal denominational shift.

Cross References

• Cross reference: none. See CU-5c-1866-05 Rim Cud.

External References