PC-1c-1887-06R Pre-Cud

Description

Sixth documented pre-cud on the reverse of an 1887 Indian Head Cent, this variety captures the intermediate stage of die failure where a rim crack has developed but the fractured section has not yet separated from the die face. Pre-cuds are diagnostically significant because they document the crack patterns that precede full cud formation — if the die continues in service, the cracked section may eventually break away entirely, leaving a cavity that produces the raised featureless blob characteristic of a cud error. An important comment accompanies this entry: "PC-1887-06R and PC-1887-07R are on the same coin," meaning the seventh pre-cud for this date shares the same die pair and was discovered on the same specimen. Finding two pre-cuds on a single coin indicates that the reverse die had developed multiple rim cracks simultaneously — a pattern consistent with advanced die fatigue where stress-induced fractures propagate at several locations around the rim before any single crack progresses to full separation. The Indian Head Cent's bronze composition and 19mm diameter created moderate striking forces that gradually weakened die rims through the cyclic stress of high-volume production. The 1887 date saw a Philadelphia Mint production of 45,226,483 cents, placing significant demands on each die pair. Cataloged by Cuds on Coins with no external cross-references, this variety provides valuable documentation of die failure progression patterns on a late-19th-century coin series. The co-occurrence of the -06R and -07R pre-cuds on a single coin offers researchers a rare opportunity to study multiple simultaneous die failure points.

Attribution History

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

External References