LDB4-1955S-019 BIE Die Break

Description

Nineteenth BIE die break cataloged for the 1955 San Francisco Mint Lincoln Wheat Cent, this variety documents a fracture between letters of the LIBERTY inscription that produces a raised vertical element on the coin's surface. The San Francisco Mint struck relatively modest quantities of cents in 1955 compared to Philadelphia and Denver, making S-mint BIE varieties scarcer in absolute terms even though the die failure mechanism remains identical across all three facilities. BIE breaks develop when the thin wall of die steel separating two incuse letter cavities fractures under repeated striking pressure, and the resulting void fills with coin metal to create the characteristic raised bar. Cross-referenced as Cohen Not Listed and Hardy 55S-ALE+1, this variety was documented on February 12, 2024, by Cuds on Coins — a notably recent documentation date that demonstrates continued new discoveries in a series that ended production over six decades ago. The Hardy designation 55S-ALE+1 places this break in a specific position relative to the LIBERTY letters, and the "Not Listed" Cohen reference indicates this variety had not been incorporated into the Cohen catalog at the time of documentation. The 1955-S Wheat Cent shares its date with the legendary 1955 doubled die obverse from Philadelphia, one of the most famous error coins in American numismatics, which has historically driven intense scrutiny of all 1955-dated cents and contributed to the thorough documentation of ancillary varieties like BIE breaks.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Bill Gianfala
• Cross references: Cohen Not Listed, Hardy 55S-ALE+1. 02/12/2024.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References