CU-20c-1875S-01 Cud

Description

Cataloged by Cuds on Coins, CU-20c-1875S-01 is a cud error on the 1875-S Seated Liberty Twenty Cent piece — one of the rarest denominations in United States coinage history, produced for only four years from 1875 to 1878. A cud is a major die break at the rim where a piece of the die physically broke away, leaving the corresponding area of the coin as a raised, featureless blob of metal at the edge. This particular specimen carries both a reverse cud and an obverse rim cud (cataloged separately as CU-20c-1875S-01 Rim Cud), making it a double-sided die break that significantly enhances its numismatic interest. The twenty-cent piece was designed by William Barber, featuring a seated Liberty on the obverse and a heraldic eagle on the reverse, struck in 90% silver at 5.0 grams with a diameter of 22.0 mm. The San Francisco Mint struck the majority of twenty-cent pieces, as the denomination was conceived primarily to facilitate commerce in the western states where the Spanish bit system made a twenty-cent denomination practical. However, public confusion between the similarly-sized twenty-cent piece and the quarter led to the denomination's rapid discontinuation. A cud on this short-lived denomination is particularly noteworthy because the limited production run — only four years of business strikes with the 1877 and 1878 issues struck only as proofs — means the total die population was small, making any significant die failure an uncommon survival. Collectors should examine both sides for the paired rim break features.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Randall P
• Cross reference: none. This coin has an obverse rim cud as well. See CU-20c-1875S-01 Rim Cud
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References