Die States, or The Journey of a Die – from First Strike to Terminal State
In answer to a recent question, and sort of as a natural outflow of our discussion about Luster, I thought I would take a few moments to talk about die states. What are die states, and why are they important? How can we tell what state the die is? Die states are very important to some numismatists, especially those concerned with die varieties. Collectors of early coins love learning about die states, for reasons we shall get to shortly.
Every time a die strikes a coin, the metal flow of the coin wears on the die. Between two strikes, this change is imperceptible, but over time a great change occurs on the die. If you were to take every coin ever struck by a die, theoretically you would be able to line them up from the very first strike to the very last, just by examining the wear on the die.
Luckily, other things sometimes happen which give us a clue. Sometimes the dies come together without a planchet in the coining chamber, in which case the dies will transfer some of their design to the other die. This is known as a die clash. Sometimes, mint workers will take a bristled brush and polish the dies, leaving polish lines all over the surface of the die. Mint workers often do this when there is evidence of a clash. Sometimes, the die will begin to crack, even breaking off in places if the cracks get bad enough. Other things such as gouges and rust also occur to the dies. Each of these occurrences is unique, and just like your favorite cops on CSI use a fingerprint to identify the culprit, these die markers identify the die. Other things, such as doubled dies, repunched mintmarks, and hand placement of letters, numbers and devices on early coins also serve as unique die identifiers. As the die continues through its life, these things happen and change, and we can “watch” the progress of the life of a die through these die sates.
(An incredibly popular die clash known as the “Bugs Bunny Franklin”)
The die state is important because earlier strikes will be sharper, crisper, and have more details (sometimes, through an error in the die-making process, even the prime state of the die will have cracks). Remember, as the die wears, details become softened and eliminated. For a doubled die specialist, the early die states are very important because in later die states the doubling may be harder to see. The die can still be identified through the use of the unique die markers, however.
Those who study die states generally break the life of the die into three main categories – early die state (EDS), mid die state (MDS), and late die state (LDS). There are of course intermediate stages; often when a new die crack or clash appears, a new die state is labeled. Another naming scheme is to assign a small letter to subsequent die states, such that the prime state is ‘a’, the next state is ‘b’, and so on. Other collectors use Roman numerals for successive die states, particularly collectors of half cents and large cents following Breen’s books. You can see the convenience this poses for a well studied die with numerous die states described.
Collectors use the die state of dies to determine an emission sequence – which order the dies were used in. This is important in series which are collected by die marriage – or a pairing of obverse and reverse die. Say Obverse Die #1 is initially paired with Reverse Die A, but sometime during the striking, Reverse Die A cracks and is replaced with Reverse Die B. Later, Obverse Die #1 completely disintegrates because it was improperly heat treated, or the steel was bad. Obverse Die #2 replaces it.
Now, imagine its 150 years later and some numismatist has three coins struck during this run, one from each die marriage. The first pairing, call it O-101, is from both fresh, new dies. After Reverse A cracks and is replaced by B, you have a new die marriage – O-102. When Obverse #1 shatters, the new marriage is O-103. But the first obverse die was used for the first two marriages, and the reverse die overlaps the last two marriages. By examining the die state, the careful numismatist can determine this sequence, and piece together what happened. It is the die state that lets us know the order was 101, 102, 103, and not the other way around – 103, 102, 101.
(Bust Half Dollars are widely studied by die marriage and die state)
You might say so what? But to some numismatists, this sequence is very interesting. In some cases, there is quite a bit of mystery and intrigue associated with this. For example, certain varieties of the 1795 half dime were actually struck before the 1794 dated half dime! How do we know this? Through a careful examination of the die states, of course.
The die state is also important to some error collectors. As the die strikes coins, sometimes it will crack. Sometimes, these cracks will grow and progress, until pieces of the die break off. Some collectors like to get multiple examples of these cracks, and watch how the crack grew until the terminal die state. Some terminal die state coins can be magnificent – numerous cracks spider web the die, with pieces of the die missing (known as die breaks, or if it is at the edge it is called a cud).
It is important for collectors of modern coins to be aware of certain marketing schemes by the TPGs. They will label new issues, under certain circumstances, as “Early Release” (NGC) or “First Strike” (PCGS). These are incredibly deceptive, especially the PCGS designation, because they seem to imply that the coins so labeled are actually struck from an Early Die State. Remember, an early die state is not worn, and will produce crisper, sharper coins. True first strikes will thus often be nicer coins. However, these labels are issued for any coin submitted within the cutoff period – which means that the coins could actually be from LDS dies. This is why the premium for “First Strike” coins is ridiculous – it means absolutely nothing.
So, how do you determine what die state your coin is, if you feel so inclined? Take a good look at the coin. Notice how sharp and crisp the elements are. Notice if there are die clashes, or cracks, or breaks, or cuds. Notice if there are polish lines, or if the elements look worn out and distorted. Let’s look at a few coins together to try and distinguish their die states. First up is a very early die state on this 1954 FBL Franklin. Notice how sharp and crisp all the design elements are, and how there is a complete lack of clashes or polish lines.
For the average MDS coin, there isn’t really much distinguishing it. It doesn’t have the sharp, crisp look of the EDS, and it doesn’t have the worn, distorted look of an LDS coin. MDS coins show a little of the wear of life, some things may have happened to them, but they still have a ways to go. Many of the coins in your collection will be MDS coins, such as this 1958 showing a good bit of die polish lines.
Contrast this now with a late die state 1953S. Notice how distorted all the elements seem – how they look tired, for lack of a better word. Also look at the rough texture of the fields. This is what we call an “orange peel” effect, for the characteristic look. Numismatists use the term orange peel in two very different ways to refer to two very different effects (the other one is most commonly seen on 19th century proof gold).
A couple other late die state coins can help show the difference. This is a very late die state Jefferson nickel, a coin we are all familiar with. On this one, look how all the elements are distorted and enlarged. This is an effect called Die Deterioration Doubling, and occurs when coins are struck from very worn dies – dies near the end of their life.
The final coin I will use to illustrate a late die state will be this 1812 Capped Bust Half. This coin was struck from very well worn dies, and shows the worn and enlarged elements. Note how the stars are all drawn out to the edge, looking like caricatures of themselves. As on the Jefferson nickel above, note how many of the details appear soft and worn out, especially the date. This coin was struck from a die late in its life.
In many ways, the extremely late die state coins are more fun than earlier die states. There are some very dedicated collectors who specialize in terminal die state coins – finding the very last coins that a die struck. These coins will often have severe die breaks, cuds, and all manner of interesting defects before the die finally disintegrated or was retired from service.
Well, I hope that helps you understand die states and why they are important to numismatics. For another example, take a look at this write-up on the Harry Bass Foundation webpage. Harry Bass was one of the most famous collectors of gold coinage, and he studied die states extensively.
Harry Bass webpage
Jason Poe
aka physics-fan3.14
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