CU-5c-1944P-01 Cud

Description

Documented by Cuds on Coins under the designation CU-5c-1944P-01 and cross-referenced as JNC-44P-1, this cud variety appears on the 1944 Philadelphia-mint Jefferson Nickel struck in the wartime silver alloy composition. During 1942 through 1945, the United States Mint replaced the standard copper-nickel alloy with a 56% copper, 35% silver, and 9% manganese composition to conserve nickel for military applications, and these wartime nickels were struck at all three mints with a large mintmark placed above the dome of Monticello on the reverse. A cud is a specific type of major die break where a fragment of the die separates at the rim, creating a raised, featureless blob of metal on the struck coin that obliterates whatever design element occupied that area. The CU-5c-1944P-01 cud formed when the obverse or reverse die developed a crack that propagated to the rim edge, and continued striking pressure caused the detached section to break free entirely. Felix Schlag's original Jefferson portrait on the obverse and the Monticello rendering on the reverse provide the design context for this variety, which belongs to the Jefferson Nickels Original Design series spanning 1938 through 2003. Wartime nickels weigh 5.0 grams and measure 21.2 mm in diameter, identical dimensions to the standard composition but distinguishable by their silver content and distinctive color when uncirculated. Collectors seeking this variety should examine the rim area carefully for the characteristic raised, formless mass of metal that defines a true cud break.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Fred Weinberg
• Cross reference number: JNC-44P-1.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References