SKH-1c-1910-01 Spiked Head

Description

Establishing the sole documented spiked head entry for the 1910 Philadelphia Mint Lincoln Wheat Cent, SKH-1c-1910-01 records a die clash variety from the second year of Lincoln Cent production. Cross-referenced against the Cohen Index as "Not Listed" with a documentation date of March 2, 2017, this variety was identified well after the major reference catalogs were published. A spiked head on a Wheat Cent forms through the same die clash mechanism as on modern Shield Cents, but the wheat ears reverse design produces different clash transfer patterns than the Union Shield: when Victor David Brenner's obverse and reverse dies contacted each other without a planchet, the wheat stalks and lettering from the reverse impressed into the obverse die face, creating a raised protrusion from Lincoln's portrait on subsequent strikes. The 1910 cent was only the second year of the Lincoln design, and production at the Philadelphia Mint was still in its early phase of adapting to the new coin. Brenner's original reverse design — featuring two wheat ears framing the denomination text — had replaced his controversial VDB initials version used briefly in 1909. A spiked head from this early period demonstrates that die clash events occurred from the very beginning of the Lincoln Cent series, establishing a pattern that would continue for over a century. Cataloged by Cuds on Coins, SKH-1c-1910-01 is valued by early Lincoln Cent specialists as evidence that the die clash phenomenon was present during the formative years of one of America's most enduring coin designs.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Keith Christenson
• Cross reference number: Cohen Index Not Listed. 03/02/2017.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References