2011P-1DER-001T Trail Die Reverse

Description

Discovered by Louis Schaeffer and documented by Trail Dies, the 2011P-1DER-001T Trail Die Reverse on the Lincoln Shield Cent presents trail line impressions extending from the tops of the letters MERI in AMERICA and also from the F in OF, with the offset direction of the trail lines at 000 degrees — indicating a perfectly vertical displacement direction. Trail dies result from an incompletely hubbed die entering production, where the partially formed design elements appear as faint ghost images trailing away from the fully struck primary design. Die stage documentation places this specimen at Stage B, with the obverse in early-to-mid die state showing a small gouge above and northeast of the 0 in the date, a light diagonal die scratch below the chin, and a small gouge southwest of the second T of TRUST. The reverse is in early-to-mid die state with a small gouge above the left corner of the shield. The 000-degree offset means the trail lines extend directly upward from the affected letters, producing a vertical ghosting effect above MERI and F that is distinct from the rotational or pivoted displacement patterns seen in conventional doubled dies. The 2011-P Lincoln Shield Cent was struck at the Philadelphia Mint on copper-plated zinc planchets weighing 2.5 grams and measuring 19.05 mm in diameter. Trail die varieties are less widely collected than traditional doubled dies but represent a fascinating category of die manufacture anomaly that reveals the incomplete hubbing process.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Louis Schaeffer
• Expert attribution by Trail Dies

External References