CU-1C-1937-01 Cud

Description

Only documented cud for the 1937 Philadelphia Mint Lincoln Wheat Cent, CU-1C-1937-01 preserves a rim-level die fracture from the heart of the Great Depression era. The 1937 cent was produced at a time when the American economy was experiencing a partial recovery from the depths of the early 1930s, though the "Roosevelt Recession" of 1937-1938 would soon interrupt that progress. Philadelphia struck approximately 309.2 million cents in 1937, employing the standard 95% copper and 5% tin-and-zinc bronze composition that had been used since 1864. A cud forms through the progressive failure of the die rim under repeated striking pressure: fatigue cracks initiate at stress concentration points along the rim, propagate through the die steel over thousands of strikes, and eventually cause a fragment to break free. The void left behind fills with planchet metal on each subsequent impression, building the characteristic raised, featureless mass. That only one cud has been documented for the 1937-P date suggests that die replacement protocols at the Philadelphia Mint were effective enough to limit the number of cud-producing dies that remained in service. Cataloged by Cuds on Coins, CU-1C-1937-01 is a solitary entry for this date that appeals to collectors seeking Depression-era die break varieties within the Lincoln Wheat Cent series.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Chuck Newman
• CU-1C-1937-01
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References