2012P-1DEO-015T Trail Die Obverse

Description

Documented in the Trail Dies catalog and discovered by Mark Britton, the 2012P-1DEO-015T is a trail die obverse variety found on the 2012 Philadelphia Mint Lincoln Shield Cent. The fifteenth cataloged trail die obverse for this date reflects the robust documentation effort across Shield Cent production at the Philadelphia Mint. Die marker documentation identifies Stage "C" at late die state (LDS) with a die crack in Lincoln's forehead on the obverse and a die crack along the upper left edge of the shield above the letters PLUR of PLURIBUS on the reverse. The forehead die crack on the obverse is positioned in one of the highest-stress areas of the portrait, where the deep relief required to produce Lincoln's facial features concentrates striking forces and accelerates die fatigue — making forehead cracks among the most commonly observed progressive die deterioration features on Lincoln Cent obverse dies. The reverse die crack along the upper left shield edge above PLUR documents corresponding structural failure on the reverse, suggesting both dies in this pair had reached advanced stages of wear by the time these specimens were struck. The Lincoln Shield Cent was struck at the Philadelphia Mint in 2012 in copper-plated zinc (97.5% zinc, 2.5% copper) weighing 2.5 grams with a 19.05 mm diameter. Victor David Brenner designed the obverse portrait, while Lyndall Bass designed the Union Shield reverse introduced in 2010. Mark Britton's discovery of this trail die variety at the 015 sequence position demonstrates the frequency with which trail die events are identified on modern Lincoln Cents, and the late die state documentation with bilateral die cracks provides collectors with clear expectations for the die condition present on genuine specimens of this variety.

Die Markers

• Stage “C“, obverse is LDS – a die crack is seen in Lincoln’s forehead.Reverse is LDS – a die crack is seen along the upper left edge of the shield above the letters PLUR of PLURIBUS.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Mark Britton
• Expert attribution by Trail Dies

External References