CU-50c-1776/1976D-03R Cud

Description

Third documented reverse cud on the 1976-D Bicentennial Kennedy Half Dollar, CU-50c-1776/1976D-03R provides further evidence of the die stress accumulated during Denver's massive production run of 287,565,248 dual-dated half dollars. With three separate reverse cuds now cataloged for this single date-mint combination, the 1976-D Bicentennial half emerges as a particularly productive source of rim break varieties — a pattern consistent with the extreme volume and accelerated production schedule that characterized Bicentennial coinage. Cataloged by Cuds on Coins with no cross-reference number, the "03R" suffix sequentially follows the 01R and 02R entries, building a statistical picture of reverse die failure rates during this unprecedented production effort. The Bicentennial half dollar program required the U.S. Mint to produce coins bearing both the standard Kennedy obverse and the special Independence Hall reverse designed by Seth Huntington, and the tooling transition between standard and commemorative reverses may have introduced additional die stress factors not present during normal production years. Each successive cud entry for a date-mint combination increases the variety's significance as a data point in understanding die longevity under high-volume production conditions. Collectors assembling Bicentennial error sets should note that multiple distinct reverse cuds exist for this issue.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Fred Weinberg
• CU-50c-1776/1976D-03R; number: none.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References