2003D-1DER-002T Trail Die Reverse

Description

Documented in the Trail Dies catalog and discovered by Cal Goddard, the 2003D-1DER-002T is a trail die reverse variety found on the 2003 Denver Mint Lincoln Memorial Cent. Trail dies represent a specialized class of die variety where a faint secondary impression of the design appears offset from the primary struck image, created when a die receives an unintended contact during manufacturing, setup, or initial test-strike procedures. The die marker documentation identifies Stage "B" with the obverse in late die state (LDS), exhibiting a small die gouge above and between the L and I of LIBERTY and another small die gouge in the mintmark area. The reverse is documented at mid-die-state (MDS) with no additional markers noted beyond the trail die effect itself. The obverse LDS designation paired with reverse MDS suggests the obverse die deteriorated more rapidly than the reverse in this die marriage, or that the dies were paired at different points in their respective service lives — a common occurrence at high-volume minting facilities. The Lincoln Memorial Cent, designed by Victor David Brenner for the obverse and Frank Gasparro for the reverse, was struck in copper-plated zinc (97.5% zinc, 2.5% copper) weighing 2.50 grams with a 19.05 mm diameter. The Denver Mint produced billions of cents in 2003, maintaining a large working die inventory in which trail die events could occur during die installation, testing, or the automated die-setting procedures used in modern high-speed coining presses. Cal Goddard's discovery of this trail die variety adds to the systematic documentation of trail die occurrences maintained by the Trail Dies reference catalog, which organizes these varieties by denomination, date, mint, and die face affected.

Die Markers

• Stage “B “, obverse is LDS – a small die gouge is seen above and in between the L and I of LIBERTY. Another small die gouge is seen in the mint mark.
• Reverse is MDS – none noted

Attribution History

• Discovered by Cal Goddard
• Expert attribution by Trail Dies

External References