SKH-1c-2017P-01 Spiked Head

Description

Philadelphia's contribution to the 2017 spiked head catalog begins with SKH-1c-2017P-01, the first of what would become a substantial sequence of documented portrait-area die cracks from the 2017 (P) Lincoln Shield Cent. The Philadelphia Mint, operating without a mintmark on cents throughout most of its history, produced the majority of the nation's cent coinage in 2017 alongside Denver's parallel output. This first entry establishes the baseline for 2017 Philadelphia spiked head research: its spike geometry, angle, and position on Lincoln's portrait set the reference point against which all subsequent 2017-P submissions would be compared to confirm uniqueness. The spiked head phenomenon on Shield cents follows the same mechanical principles as on earlier Memorial and Wheat cent designs—a fatigue crack develops in the die steel at a stress concentration point near the portrait, and striking pressure forces planchet metal into the crack—but the slightly modified portrait relief of the modern hub may influence where cracks preferentially nucleate. Cataloged by Cuds on Coins.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Andrew Wojtowich
• Cross reference: none. 04/14/2017.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References