CU-1C-1945-02 Cud

Description

Struck during the closing months of the Second World War, the 1945 Lincoln cent bearing cud CU-1C-1945-02 carries both numismatic and historical significance. The shell-casing brass used for 1945 cent planchets — recycled from spent military ammunition — represents one of the most tangible connections between American coinage and the war effort. Each planchet began as part of a cartridge case, was collected, melted, recast, and rolled into coin blanks at a time when raw copper remained reserved for active military production. Philadelphia's billion-plus mintage for the year demanded enormous die consumption, and prolonged press runs inevitably pushed some dies past their fracture threshold. The cud error that results from a rim break is among the most visually striking of all die failures: a smooth, raised shelf interrupting the normal denticle pattern and design elements with an unmistakable blank area. CU-1C-1945-02 is the second documented Philadelphia cud for this date, cataloged by the Cuds on Coins project and cross-referenced under its designation.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Chuck Newman
• CU-1C-1945-02
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References