SKH-1c-1952S-01 Spiked Head

Description

Struck at the San Francisco Mint, this 1952-S Lincoln Wheat Cent carries the S mintmark that identifies it as a product of the facility established during the California Gold Rush and historically associated with careful production standards. Cataloged as SKH-1c-1952S-01 in the Cuds on Coins registry and cross-referenced as Cohen Index 52S-70, this spiked head variety represents a die crack through Lincoln's portrait on a San Francisco die — notable because San Francisco cent production in the early 1950s yielded lower mintages than Philadelphia or Denver, making S-mint die varieties inherently scarcer in the surviving population. The "S" in the catalog designation distinguishes this from Philadelphia and Denver spiked heads of the same year, and the "-01" suffix indicates it was the first spiked head die documented for the 1952-S date. Cohen Index 52S-70 places this variety within the systematic reference for Lincoln Cent dies, with the "S" prefix incorporated into the Cohen numbering to maintain mint-specific tracking. The raised spike projecting from Lincoln's head follows the universal spiked head mechanism: a die crack channels metal upward during striking, creating a raised fin visible under magnification. The 1952-S Lincoln Wheat Cent was produced during the post-war era, as the series approached its final decade before the transition to the Lincoln Memorial reverse in 1959.

Attribution History

• Discovered by JC Stevens
• Cross reference number: Cohen Index 52S-70. 03/25/2016
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References