SKH-25c-1972D-01 Spiked Head

Description

Spiked heads on Washington Quarters are rare entries in the die variety catalog, making this first documented example for the 1972 Denver Mint issue a notable find. A spiked head forms when foreign matter lodges in the die cavity near the portrait — Washington's on a quarter, rather than the Lincoln portrait where the vast majority of spiked heads are documented on cents — and the void produces a raised spike on the struck coin. The die fill mechanism operates identically regardless of denomination, but the larger quarter die face means the spike is proportionally smaller relative to the overall design, potentially harder to detect without magnification. SKH-25c-1972D-01 was cataloged in January 2024, reflecting very recent research that expanded spiked head documentation beyond its traditional cent-dominated territory. This Denver Mint business strike was produced during the classic eagle-reverse era of the Washington Quarter, designed by John Flanagan and in continuous production since 1932. Cataloged by Cuds on Coins, this variety underscores that die fill errors are not denomination-specific — they occur on any coin where debris enters the die cavity.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Mitch Wilkinson
• Cross reference: none. 01/25/2024.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References