1940 (S) Mercury Dime - RRDC-10c-1940S-02 Bisecting Rim to Rim Die Crack

Description

Cataloged as RRDC-10c-1940S-02 by Cuds on Coins, this bisecting rim-to-rim die crack on the 1940-S Mercury dime traces a complete fracture path across the die from one rim point to another — a crack that more or less divides the die face in two. Adolph A. Weinman's Mercury dime design (more properly the Winged Liberty Head), produced from 1916 through 1945, features Liberty wearing a winged Phrygian cap on the obverse and a fasces bound with an olive branch on the reverse. San Francisco struck approximately 21.56 million dimes in 1940, a moderate mintage that reflects the S-mint's role as the Pacific Coast production facility during the pre-war era. Bisecting die cracks represent an advanced stage of die failure: where a simple rim die crack runs from the rim partway into the design field and stops, and an interior break forms a closed island within the die, a bisecting crack traverses the entire diameter of the die from rim to rim, more or less dividing the die face in two. Such a crack usually shows only lateral spread, so the design on both sides stays level, though a segment of the line may show slight vertical displacement; if a whole side sinks or shifts, Error-Ref classes the error as a retained cud. The "02" suffix indicates this is the second documented bisecting rim-to-rim crack for the 1940-S dime, suggesting the die steel or production conditions for this mint-date combination were conducive to full-diameter fractures. Collectors should examine 1940-S Mercury dimes under 10x magnification for a raised line running completely across the coin from rim to rim, with possible subtle misalignment of design elements on either side of the crack.

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