1995P-1DEO-011T Trail Die Obverse

Description

Faint raised lines trail from the tops of the LIBERTY letters and, barely discernibly, from IN GOD WE TRUST on this 1995 Philadelphia Mint Lincoln Memorial Cent, the hallmark of a trail die — a variety created when the die shifts laterally during the hubbing process, dragging partially impressed design elements across the die surface. The offset direction of the trail lines is measured at 300 degrees, placing the drag in the upper-left quadrant. This die is similar to 1995P 1DEO-006T but with lighter trailing in the motto area, suggesting a less pronounced shift during hubbing. Notably, the reverse die paired with this obverse is also documented as a trail die, making this a dual-trail-die pairing — an uncommon occurrence that provides researchers with evidence about press operations and die installation sequences. Trail dies are a relatively modern area of die variety study, cataloged primarily by the Trail Dies research group, and they occur when mechanical tolerances during hubbing allow slight lateral movement between hub and die. The 1995-P Lincoln Cent is famously associated with the dramatic 1995 Doubled Die Obverse (DDO-001), but this trail die variety demonstrates that the Philadelphia Mint's die shop produced multiple types of variety-producing anomalies that year across different die pairs.

External References