SKH-1c-1970D-01 Spiked Head

Description

First in the spiked head catalog for the 1970-D Lincoln Memorial cent, SKH-1c-1970D-01 documents a die crack or chip at or near the top of Lincoln's head on the obverse that produces a spike-like projection of raised metal on struck coins. Spiked heads — sometimes called "horned heads" or "devil horns" by collectors — occur when a die crack propagates from the high-relief area of Lincoln's hair or forehead into the adjacent field, creating a channel in the die that fills with metal during striking. The result is a thin, pointed extension rising from Lincoln's head that resembles a spike, horn, or antenna depending on the crack's direction and length. This error type is specific to the Lincoln cent design because the portrait's high-relief hair detail creates stress concentration points where cracks preferentially initiate, and the surrounding open field provides space for the crack to extend visibly. Documented on July 23, 2016, with no cross-references to other attribution systems, this variety's catalog position as SKH-01 marks it as the first spiked head identified for the 1970-D date — the beginning of a sequence that would eventually grow to seven documented examples. The 1970-D date's prolific error output extends even to this specialized variety type, reinforcing its status as one of the most thoroughly documented dates in the entire Lincoln Memorial cent series for die-related anomalies.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Earl M
• Cross reference: none. 07/23/2016.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References