CU-1C-1942S-03 Cud

Description

Completing a trio of documented cuds for the 1942 (S) Lincoln Wheat Cent, CU-1C-1942S-03 records the third die to suffer a rim fracture during San Francisco's final bronze cent production. Three cuds from a single wartime date — the last year before copper was diverted from cent production for the war effort — suggest that despite the extraordinary circumstances of 1942, die failure rates followed patterns consistent with normal production rather than accelerated wartime deterioration. This is notable because it implies that while the Mint adapted its alloy and conservation strategies for the war, the mechanical process of striking coins and the physical behavior of dies remained governed by the same metallurgical principles as in peacetime. The third cud for the 1942-S date fractured from yet another individual die, adding a third distinct rim position and cud profile to the catalog for this issue. Together, the three 1942-S cuds — CU-1C-1942S-01 through CU-1C-1942S-03 — document a cross-section of die behavior at San Francisco during one of the most consequential years in United States cent production, the threshold between bronze and wartime steel.

Attribution History

• Discovered by JC Stevens
• CU-1C-1942S-03
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References