RIDB-1c-1996D-01 Retained Interior Die Break

Description

The only documented retained interior die break for the 1996-D Lincoln Memorial Cent, RIDB-1c-1996D-01 records this uncommon die failure on a modern copper-plated zinc cent from the Denver Mint. Retained interior die breaks differ from standard cuds in both location and mechanism: rather than fracturing at the rim, the die develops an internal crack where a section of steel remains held in place by surrounding material, producing a raised irregular feature within the design field. The copper-plated zinc composition used since 1982 — a thin copper shell over a zinc core — strikes differently than solid bronze, and the softer planchet material can sometimes reveal die imperfections more clearly. Frank Gasparro's Lincoln Memorial reverse, in continuous use since 1959, was nearing the end of its service life when this 1996-D was struck; the design would be replaced in 2009 by bicentennial reverses and then the Union Shield in 2010. As the sole RIDB for this date, the variety holds singular status within the 1996-D die failure census. Denver's massive cent production in the mid-1990s consumed thousands of working dies, making documented RIDBs genuinely scarce relative to total output.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Brian Bassler
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References