SD-1c-1909-01 Split Die

Description

Cataloged by Cuds on Coins as SD-1c-1909-01, this split die variety was discovered on the 1909 Lincoln Wheat Cent with the VDB designer's initials — the celebrated first-year issue of Victor David Brenner's Lincoln cent design that debuted on August 2, 1909, to mark the centennial of Abraham Lincoln's birth. A split die occurs when the die steel fractures not at the rim (as in cuds and pre-cuds) but through the die face itself, creating a crack that extends across design elements and produces a raised irregular line on struck coins. The 1909 VDB cent holds a special place in American numismatics: the initials V.D.B. on the reverse were removed after public outcry within days of release, making the VDB variety a short-lived and intensely collected issue. Philadelphia struck approximately 27.99 million VDB cents during the brief window before the initials were removed. The "01" suffix indicates this is the first and currently sole split die documented for the 1909 VDB Lincoln cent, making it a particularly noteworthy die variety on an already historically significant coin. No cross-references from other attribution services exist for this variety. Split dies differ mechanically from rim-based die failures in that the fracture propagates through the interior of the die face rather than from the periphery inward, and the resulting raised line on struck coins often crosses multiple design elements — letters, portrait features, or devices — providing a distinctive linear diagnostic. Collectors examining 1909 VDB cents should look for a raised line traversing the design that displays consistent width and metallic character, distinguishing it from scratches or other post-strike damage through its relationship to the die crack's path across the coin's surface.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Mark Clewell
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References