1896-P VAM-1D

Description

Featuring a thread-like impression across Liberty's face, VAM-1D documents an unusual die anomaly on the 1896 Philadelphia Morgan Dollar classified as III2 1 - C3a. The obverse die shows a horizontal die scratch on Liberty's nostril that angles upward on the right end — a feature that researchers speculate could have been hubbed through a piece of wire that became trapped between the hub and die during manufacture, leaving a permanent linear impression in the die steel. The Die Pair Identification System assigns this marriage coordinates C3/LE5. Wire strikes and foreign material impressions on dies are among the more intriguing die anomalies because they represent physical evidence of specific incidents during the die manufacturing process — a strand of metal or debris caught at precisely the wrong moment. Philadelphia struck approximately 9.98 million Morgan Dollars in 1896, the nineteenth year of the series. The thread-like impression provides an unmistakable attribution feature, as its position across Liberty's nostril is unique among 1896 die marriages. Cataloged by VAMWorld, VAM-1D's distinctive facial die scratch offers collectors a variety whose primary diagnostic feature is visible under relatively low magnification, making it accessible for attribution without specialized equipment.

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