SKH-1c-1951-01 Spike Head

Description

Comparing proof and business strike spiked heads from the same year reveals how striking method affects the appearance of die crack varieties — and the 1951 date offers both types for study, with this proof example cataloged as SKH-1c-1951-01 and cross-referenced as Cohen Index 51-70. On proof strikings, the multiple impressions from polished dies onto polished planchets create mirror-like fields that frame the raised spike in high contrast, making the projection from Lincoln's head visually dramatic even at modest magnification. Business strike counterparts from the same year show the identical mechanical phenomenon — metal forced into a die crack — but against lustrous rather than reflective fields, producing a subtler visual presentation. Cohen Index 51-70 positions this variety within the established die variety reference for Lincoln Cents, providing an attribution number recognized across the collecting community. The 1951 proof Lincoln Wheat Cent was struck at the Philadelphia Mint with a total proof mintage of 57,500 sets, modestly higher than the 1950 proof output that marked the resumption of proof coinage after the wartime suspension. Victor David Brenner's detailed portrait of Abraham Lincoln, with its intricate hair and beard rendering, contains the stress concentration points in the die face where cracks originate and propagate to create these distinctive spike projections.

Attribution History

• Discovered by JC Stevens
• Cross reference number: Cohen Index 51-70. 03/25/2016.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References