SKH-1c-2003-01 Spiked Head

Description

Opening the spiked head catalog for the 2003 Philadelphia Mint Lincoln Memorial Cent, this inaugural variety documents the first confirmed die clash event from a year that saw the Philadelphia facility produce over 3.3 billion cents. The 2003-P Memorial Cent carries Victor David Brenner's iconic obverse portrait paired with Frank Gasparro's Lincoln Memorial reverse — a design combination that had been in continuous production since 1959 and would continue through 2008. Die clashes on Memorial Cents produce a characteristic spike when the reverse's architectural elements — particularly the Memorial's columns and upper entablature — transfer into the obverse die during press cycles that occur without an intervening planchet. The resulting raised projection appears on Lincoln's portrait, and its precise position and angle serve as the diagnostic fingerprint for each individual variety. As the sole cataloged spiked head for the 2003-P to date, this -01 entry may indicate either that the date has received less searching attention from variety hunters or that relatively few die pairs experienced clash events during that production run. Cataloged by Cuds on Coins, the variety was formally documented on March 9, 2021, nearly two decades after the coins were struck, illustrating the ongoing nature of die variety discovery as collectors continue examining coins long after their original release into circulation.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Robert Oney
• Cross reference: none. 03/09/2021.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References