RCD-5c-1867-01R & 02R Retained Cud

Description

Combining two retained cud attributions in a single catalog entry, RCD-5c-1867-01R & 02R documents a pair of retained cuds on the 1867 Shield Nickel with Rays — a variety from the very first full year of United States nickel five-cent coinage production. James B. Longacre's Shield nickel, introduced in 1866, featured a bold federal shield on the obverse with the date below and a large numeral 5 surrounded by thirteen stars and radiating rays on the reverse. The "With Rays" reverse variant was produced only in 1866 and early 1867 before the rays were removed to ease striking difficulties, making this one of the shortest-lived design types in American numismatics. The combination of two retained cuds (01R and 02R) on a single coin or die suggests either that the die experienced multiple independent rim fractures at different positions, or that the catalog groups two related fractures on the same die under a combined designation. Philadelphia struck approximately 2.02 million Shield Nickels with Rays in 1867, a brief production run before the design change eliminated the reverse rays. The 75% copper, 25% nickel composition was new to American coinage in this era, and the high striking pressures required to bring up the detailed shield design against the hard nickel alloy created die stress conditions that promoted rim fractures. Cataloged by Cuds on Coins with no known cross-references, this variety provides evidence that die failure was a recognized production issue even in the earliest years of nickel coinage. Collectors examining 1867 With Rays Shield nickels should look for the characteristic raised displacement along the reverse rim at two distinct locations, with the crack boundary lines marking each retained fragment.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Fred Weinberg
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References