1971 (D) Lincoln Memorial Cent - SKH-1c-1971D-22 Spiked Head

Description

Extending the already prolific 1971-D spiked head catalog into its upper twenties, SKH-1c-1971D-22 documents yet another obverse die that developed a fatigue crack at Lincoln's head during service at the Denver Mint. Cuds on Coins cataloged this variety on January 10, 2018. The spiked head phenomenon results from die cracks initiating at the high-relief contour of Lincoln's portrait, where the intricate hair detail creates stress concentrations in the die steel. As the crack opens, it forms a narrow channel that fills with planchet metal during each strike, producing a raised spike projecting from the head into the surrounding field. No cross-references to other attribution systems have been established for this variety. For collectors pursuing the complete 1971-D spiked head set, entries in the twenties represent the deeper end of a collecting challenge that demands careful photographic comparison against the published reference images for each numbered variety.

Cross References

• Cross reference: none. 01/10/2018.

External References