2006P-5DEO-002T Trail Die Obverse

Description

Documented by the Trail Dies catalog and discovered by Tanaka Davis, the 2006P-5DEO-002T is a trail die obverse variety found on a 2006 Philadelphia Mint Jefferson Nickel from the "Return to Monticello" design series reintroduced that year after the 2004-2005 Westward Journey commemorative issues. Trail die varieties are created when a working die receives an unintended secondary contact during manufacturing or installation, leaving a faint offset impression of the design visible on all coins subsequently struck from that die. The die marker record for Stage "B" notes the obverse at mid-die state with no markers found, while the reverse at mid-die state displays a die dot above and to the left of the E in MONTICELLO and a second die dot between the window and the arch on the right side of the Monticello building — two precise positional markers within the architectural details of Jefferson\'s estate that provide reliable attribution checkpoints. Felix Schlag\'s original 1938 Jefferson Nickel design was modified over the decades, with the 2006 return to the familiar Monticello reverse featuring refined engraving of the building\'s classical facade. Struck at the Philadelphia Mint in the standard composition of 75% copper and 25% nickel, the coin weighs 5.00 grams with a diameter of 21.2 mm. As the second cataloged trail die obverse for the 2006-P nickel, this variety documents the occurrence of trail die events during the first year of the returned Monticello design, when new die production for the revised design was ramping up. The two die dots positioned relative to specific architectural features of Monticello provide diagnostically precise identification points that distinguish this die from others in the 2006 production population.

Die Markers

• Stage “B “, obverse is MDS – none noted
• Reverse is MDS – a die dot is seen above and to the left of the E in MONTICELLO. A die dot is seen in between the window and the arch on the right side of MONTICELLO.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Tanaka Davis
• Expert attribution by Trail Dies

External References