1987P-1DER-015T Trail Die Reverse

Description

Closing the 1987 Philadelphia reverse trail die census at ten varieties, 1987P-1DER-015T was discovered by Aisha Shahid and features a 010-degree offset — just ten degrees east of due north. Trail lines extend from the tops of the EPU letters and the middle of the cornice, following this near-vertical trajectory upward along the die face. The cornice — the projecting horizontal molding at the top of the Lincoln Memorial building — is one of the finest architectural details on the reverse design, and trail effects visible in this element indicate sufficient hub displacement to disturb one of the most delicate zones of the die engraving. Tilted trail die effects at such a slight offset from vertical can be challenging to distinguish from normal die deterioration, making the specific die markers critical for attribution. The reverse is recorded at LDS (late die state) with two diagnostic features: a die gouge to the right of the 12th column and a die gouge between the N and E of ONE near the rim. The 12th column occupies the rightmost position of the Memorial colonnade, and damage in this peripheral zone often develops where die stress concentrations peak near the rim. The second gouge between N and E of ONE, located near the rim edge, provides a complementary reference point at a different compass position on the reverse face. Struck at Philadelphia (no mint mark) on copper-plated zinc planchets (97.5% zinc, 2.5% copper) at 2.5 grams and 19mm, from the 1987 mintage of 4,682,466,931 cents.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Aisha Shahid
• Expert attribution by Trail Dies

External References