CU-1c-1846-01R Rim Cud

Description

Dating to the era of large copper coinage, this 1846 Braided Hair Coronet Head Cent carries the first cataloged rim cud for its date, designated CU-1c-1846-01R. Christian Gobrecht's Braided Hair design, introduced in 1839 and continuing through 1857, depicts Liberty with her hair elaborately braided and bound by a cord on the obverse. The Medium Date variety of 1846 distinguishes this issue from other date-size variants, a classification important to early copper specialists who track every observable die difference. Rim cuds on pre-Civil War large cents are notable because these coins were struck on hand-operated screw presses at far lower speeds than later steam-powered equipment, meaning die fractures arose from different stress patterns than those found on machine-age coinage. The copper planchets were substantially heavier and broader than later small cents, and each strike demanded considerable force to impress the design. When a section of the die rim fractured, it left the same diagnostic signature found on all cuds — a raised, featureless area on the finished coin — but on a large cent's generous surface, the break is often visible without magnification.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Friscomint1793 on eBay
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References