2005 (P) Lincoln Memorial Cent - SKH-1c-2005-02 Spiked Head

Description

Cataloged nearly two years after the first 2005-P spiked head, this second entry for the date was documented on September 1, 2018, by Cuds on Coins — illustrating how die variety research unfolds incrementally over extended periods. SKH-1c-2005-02 records a second spiked head die on the 2005 Philadelphia Mint Lincoln Memorial Cent. A spiked head is a die crack or break at the top of Lincoln's head: planchet metal fills the crack during striking and stands up from the portrait as a raised spike. Two spiked heads from 2005-P is a modest catalog, though the gap between cataloging dates — October 2016 for the first and September 2018 for the second — suggests that examination of the 2005-P population has been sporadic rather than systematic, leaving open the possibility of undiscovered varieties. The 2005-P cent was the forty-seventh year of Memorial reverse production, a period when die manufacturing processes were highly refined and the basic designs had been in use long enough that production was routine.

Cross References

• Cross reference: none. 09/01/2018.

External References