PC-1c-1937-03R Pre-Cud

Description

Third reverse pre-cud in the 1937 Lincoln wheat cent census, PC-1c-1937-03R was cataloged by the Cuds on Coins attribution service as another documented instance of incipient die failure at the rim of Victor David Brenner's wheat reverse. The 1937 date represents a period of accelerating Mint production as the American economy continued its recovery from the Depression: Philadelphia struck approximately 309.2 million cents, a substantial output that required extensive die inventories and generated the mechanical conditions conducive to die rim fracturing. Three documented reverse pre-cuds for the date reflects moderate die stress levels consistent with the mid-1930s production tempo — higher than the low-output Depression years but not yet approaching the extreme die consumption rates of the wartime 1940s. Pre-cuds develop in a predictable mechanical sequence: microscopic stress fractures first form in the die steel near the rim, where the combination of outward metal flow and collar confinement creates maximum pressure during each strike. These fractures gradually propagate until they reach the die surface, creating a crack that produces a subtle raised line or slightly elevated zone on struck coins. If the die remains in service, the crack deepens into a retained cud and eventually a full cud as the die fragment separates. The 03R designation places this pre-cud third in the census for the date, following two previously documented reverse pre-cuds on different 1937 dies. The Lincoln wheat cent's reverse design concentrates inscriptional detail near the rim — the upper motto E PLURIBUS UNUM and the wheat stalk tips approach the rim closely — providing design elements that reveal pre-cud distortion when the underlying die surface begins to deform. Examination under 7-10x magnification with side-lighting best reveals the subtle rim anomaly.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Mike Antenucci
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References