SKH-1c-1953-01 Spiked Head

Description

Founding entry in the 1953 Philadelphia Mint Lincoln Wheat Cent spiked head catalog, SKH-1c-1953-01 is cross-referenced to the Cohen Index as entry 53-87, establishing dual-system attribution with the Cuds on Coins designation. The Cohen Index, maintained as a separate reference for Lincoln Cent die varieties, provides an independent confirmation pathway for collectors and researchers. First cataloged on June 1, 2016, this variety documents the initial die clash event identified for the 1953-P date — a planchet feed failure that caused the obverse and reverse dies to contact each other directly, transferring wheat ears reverse detail into the obverse die and producing a raised spike on Lincoln's portrait. The Cohen Index number 53-87 suggests a substantial body of 1953 varieties already existed in that reference system at the time of listing, placing this spiked head within a broader context of documented 1953 die varieties. Philadelphia's 1953 cent production was robust, continuing the postwar expansion of coin manufacturing that would accelerate through the decade. Victor David Brenner's Lincoln portrait, in its forty-fourth year on the cent, was struck from dies produced using well-refined hubbing processes, yet die clashes remained an inherent risk of high-speed coining operations. Cataloged by Cuds on Coins, the -01 designation gives this variety first-in-sequence status for collectors who value priority entries. The existence of both -01 and -03 spiked heads for 1953-P (with Cohen references 53-87 and 53-99 respectively) suggests at least three documented clash events for the date, with potential undiscovered entries filling the sequence.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Louis A
• Cross reference: Cohen Index 53-87. 06/01/2016.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References