SKH-1c-1976D-01 Spiked Head

Description

Recorded as SKH-1c-1976D-01 by Cuds on Coins with a documentation date of March 20, 2024, this spiked head variety appears on 1976 Denver Mint Lincoln Memorial cents. The "spiked head" error type is a specialized form of die damage in which a chip, gouge, or crack in the die surface near Lincoln's portrait produces a raised spike or protrusion extending from his head on struck coins. The visual effect ranges from a subtle nub barely perceptible without magnification to a prominent horn-like projection rising from the top of Lincoln's head — an anomaly dramatic enough to have earned its own dedicated prefix (SKH) in the Cuds on Coins catalog system, separate from conventional die chips (DC) and rim cuds (CU). The mechanism is straightforward: when die steel is lost or displaced in the area of Lincoln's portrait, the resulting cavity fills with flowing planchet metal during the striking process, and the metal that fills the void stands proud of the surrounding design. No additional cross-reference numbers from other attribution services have been assigned to this variety. SKH-1c-1976D-01 is the first documented spiked head for the 1976-D date, and its March 2024 documentation date indicates relatively recent formal cataloging, though the variety itself may have been known informally to collectors prior to its submission. Denver's 1976 cent production — struck from the standard 95% copper composition — generated ample opportunity for the type of localized die damage that produces spiked head varieties. Attribution by Cuds on Coins.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Robert Oney
• Cross reference: none. 03/20/2024.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References