LDB4-1955S-013B BIE Die Break

Description

Cataloged by Cuds on Coins as LDB4-1955S-013B and cross-referenced as Cohen 55S-B650 and Hardy 55S-4F+9 (documented November 11, 2016), this 1955-S Lincoln Wheat Cent displays a BIE die break — a distinctive class of die variety where a die chip or break between the letters B and E of LIBERTY creates a raised vertical bar resembling the letter I, producing the visual appearance of "LIBIERTY" on the struck coin. The designation describes a Stage 2 specimen matching Cohen 55S-B650 with a "sausage BIE" characterization, accompanied by a die chip in the lower loop of the first 5 in the date and a die crack below. A community note observes that Cohen 55S-BA140 may represent the same obverse die paired with a different reverse die exhibiting many large die cracks, suggesting this obverse die was used in multiple die marriages as the Mint rotated working dies during production. BIE die breaks are among the most popularly collected Lincoln Cent varieties because their visual effect — an apparent extra letter inserted into LIBERTY — is immediately recognizable without magnification. The Lincoln Wheat Cent was designed by Victor David Brenner for the obverse, struck at the San Francisco Mint in 1955 in bronze composition (95% copper, 5% tin and zinc) weighing 3.11 grams with a 19.05 mm diameter. The 1955-S had a mintage of approximately 44.6 million pieces, the lowest San Francisco Mint cent production of the decade. The Cohen and Hardy cross-references connect this variety to two independent early die variety cataloging systems, providing multiple attribution pathways for collectors and researchers studying BIE varieties on Wheat Cents.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Mark Shope
• Cross references: Cohen 55S-B650, Hardy 55S-4F+9. 11/11/2016.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References