LDB4-2004-001 BIE Die Break

Description

Near the end of the Lincoln Memorial Cent's forty-nine-year production run, this 2004 Philadelphia issue preserves a BIE die break at position 4 — the first documented example at this location for the date. Cataloged as LDB4-2004-001 and cross-referenced in the Hardy Index as 2004P-4SBH, the variety records a die fracture between letters of LIBERTY on an obverse design that would serve only four more years before being replaced by the 2009 Lincoln Bicentennial and Shield Cent reverses. The Hardy code "4SBH" encodes both the positional and morphological characteristics of the break within the Hardy classification framework for BIE varieties. BIE die breaks on modern Memorial Cents are somewhat less commonly documented than their Wheat Cent counterparts, partly because later coins receive less scrutiny from the variety community and partly because improvements in die steel metallurgy reduced the incidence of inter-letter fractures. The 2004 Philadelphia cent's high mintage nonetheless ensured a substantial number of working dies were employed, each subject to progressive fatigue that could produce breaks at any point in the LIBERTY inscription.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Louis A
• Cross reference: Hardy Index 2004P-4SBH. 08/02/2015.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References