CU-1C-1990-02 Cud

Description

The second documented cud for the 1990 Philadelphia Lincoln Memorial cent, CU-1C-1990-02 records an obverse die break where a section of hardened tool steel fractured away from the die face at or near the rim. The 1990 Philadelphia cent was produced in enormous quantities — part of a mintage that kept billions of copper-plated zinc cents flowing into commerce — and the sheer volume of dies consumed during this production created proportionally more opportunities for die fatigue failures. Each coining die in the 1990 Philadelphia production run was expected to deliver hundreds of thousands of usable impressions before replacement, and those that developed cud-forming fractures typically continued striking coins until the defect was detected during quality sampling or the die physically broke apart. The copper-plated zinc composition introduced in 1982 presents a particular dynamic for cud formation: the softer zinc substrate flows more readily into die voids than the harder copper alloy it replaced, meaning cuds on zinc cents often display sharper definition at the boundary between the raised cud mass and the adjacent design than their copper-era predecessors. Struck at Philadelphia on planchets weighing 2.5 grams and measuring 19mm.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Chuck Newman
• CU-1C-1990-02
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References