1995P-1DEO-006T Trail Die Obverse

Description

Cataloged by Trail Dies as the sixth obverse trail die for the 1995 Philadelphia Mint Lincoln Memorial Cent, this variety is documented in the unusually advanced Stage D — Very Late Die State. Most trail dies are documented in early or mid die state, making a VLDS designation noteworthy as evidence that this die continued in service well past the point where most dies would have been retired. Obverse die markers include die gouges over the 95 of the date, while the reverse shows a small die gouge under the leg of the R in AMERICA. The VLDS classification indicates severe die deterioration was present when the documented specimens were struck, and the trail die characteristics would be at their most pronounced in this stage as the die surface had degraded significantly through extended use. Trail die varieties on Lincoln Memorial Cents record the progressive deterioration of individual dies through their service life, and a Stage D designation pushes that documentation to the extreme end of the die's functional lifespan. The 1995-P date saw substantial Philadelphia Mint cent production in copper-plated zinc composition.

Die Markers

• Stage “D”, obverse is VLDS – die gouges over the 95 of the date.
• Reverse is VLDS – small die gouge under the leg of the R in AMERICA.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Bill Slaughter
• Expert attribution by Trail Dies

External References