CU-5c-1943S-01 Cud

Description

Cross-referenced as JNC-43-4 in the Jefferson Nickel Cud reference system, this 1943-S wartime silver alloy Jefferson Nickel bears a rim cud — a major die break at the coin's edge where a section of the working die fractured and separated, leaving a void that produces a raised, featureless mass of metal at the corresponding position on struck coins. The 1943-S nickel is part of the wartime silver alloy series (1942-1945), which used a special composition of 56% copper, 35% silver, and 9% manganese to conserve nickel metal needed for military armor plating and munitions production. The large P, D, or S mintmark was relocated to a prominent position above Monticello's dome on the reverse — a unique placement in U.S. coinage history designed to help the public identify wartime-composition coins for later retrieval and melting. Cuds on wartime nickels are of particular interest because the alternative alloy had different metallurgical properties than standard copper-nickel, potentially affecting die wear patterns and the frequency of die failures. Documented by Cuds on Coins under the designation CU-5c-1943S-01, this is the first cataloged cud for the 1943-S wartime nickel. The San Francisco Mint struck 104,060,000 nickels that year in the wartime alloy, and the die that produced this cud would have been removed from service after the break occurred, as the resulting coins were too visually aberrant for continued production. Collectors seeking this variety should examine the rim area carefully for the characteristic raised blob.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Fred Weinberg
• Cross reference number: JNC-43-4
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References