SKH-1C-2022-02 Spike Head

Description

Second spike head variety cataloged for the 2022 Philadelphia Lincoln Shield cent by the Cuds on Coins attribution service, SKH-1C-2022-02 extends the die crack documentation for this production year. With the 2022 census still in its early stages of development compared to the extensive 2021 record, each new entry adds to the baseline understanding of spike head frequency for the year. The mechanism producing spike heads on Lincoln Shield cents has been thoroughly documented across multiple production years: fatigue cracking at the high-relief hair detail at the top of Lincoln's portrait creates a recessed channel in the die that fills with planchet metal during striking, producing a raised projection on finished coins. The copper-plated zinc composition of modern cents — a thin copper shell over a zinc core, in production since mid-1982 — creates specific striking dynamics as the soft zinc interior deforms under pressure while the harder copper plating resists, generating stress patterns on the die surface that may contribute to accelerated deterioration in areas of concentrated relief. Philadelphia's 2022 cent production of approximately 3.16 billion pieces consumed thousands of die pairs, ensuring that any percentage of obverse dies developing spike-producing cracks translates into a meaningful absolute number of catalogable varieties. The Cuds on Coins attribution service's systematic approach to cataloging — assigning sequential numbers within each year as specimens are submitted and verified — provides both individual variety identification and aggregate statistical data on die failure rates. Collectors searching for spike heads can examine Lincoln cents from any recent year with reasonable confidence that the variety type exists within the production, and the examination requires only minimal magnification (3-5x) focused on the top of Lincoln's head where any raised projection departing from the normal hair profile indicates a spike head.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Tim Glover
• SKH-1C-2022-02
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References