1971 (S) Lincoln Memorial Cent - CU-1C-1971S-01 Cud

Description

First documented cud for the 1971-S Lincoln Memorial cent, CU-1C-1971S-01 records a die break at the rim of a business strike die that produced a raised, unstruck blob of metal on the finished coin's edge — the characteristic signature of a cud error. Cuds form when a piece of the die breaks away at the rim, leaving a void in the die face that corresponds to a featureless raised area on every coin subsequently struck from that damaged die. The designation CU-1C-1971S-01 follows the Cuds on Coins cataloging system: CU for cud, 1C for one-cent denomination, 1971S for the date and mintmark, and 01 for the first cataloged cud on this date. Each numbered cud represents a different die break at a different location along the rim, with the break's position, size, and shape constituting the primary diagnostic criteria for attribution. As a business strike variety from San Francisco, this cud entered general circulation where its distinctive raised rim blob may have attracted attention from observant change handlers even without specialized numismatic knowledge. The mechanical cause is straightforward: the repeated high-pressure impacts of striking hundreds of thousands of coins subjects the die rim to fatigue stress, and when the accumulated damage exceeds the steel's structural tolerance, a fragment separates. Die breaks at the rim progress from minor chips to full cuds as the fracture propagates, and CU-1C-1971S-01 represents a break significant enough to warrant cataloging within the Cuds on Coins inventory for this date.

Cross References

• CU-1C-1971S-01

External References