As stated previously, I found this nickel back in 1986 (it was issued in 86). It has distinct lines eminating from points on Jefferson's face in several locations on the front of the head and more faintly in other locations behind the head. The photos are the best quality I could get. Note that it appears that lines protrude from the chin, lip, nose and eyebrow. Also a line exists where the pony tail juts out. These are not straight lines like a die crack. rather they are wide at the base and seem to come to a point as it rises up on the surface of the coin. It almost looks like the features discussed above may have dragged. The features on the other side of the coin are in excellent condition. Sorry if I was supposed to post this on the thread I started a couple weeks ago. I'm new to this.
I still have a question about this coin. I have seen other stuck by capped die coins that have the same design (lincoln memorial) on both sides (i.e., the regular reverse on one side and the struck by capped die reverse on the other side). The Jefferson I have posted here has monticello on the reverse with the capped die strike version of Jefferson on the obverse. What is the difference between the two? In addition, I thought I read somewhere that the capped die strike imparts the image backwards onto the next planchet in line. The obverse side of my nickel is oriented in the same manner as a regular nickel. Any insight/clarification would be great. Thanks, Myster
"Capped die strike" is quite a general term that encompasses a variety of errors. You can have a uniface die cap that from the get-go leaves no design on the coins it strikes. You can have a die cap with a brockage of the obverse design on the reverse face. This kind of die cap leaves a counterbrockage on the coins it strikes. ( A counterbrockage is a raised, expanded version of the obverse design.) You can have a normal coin that sticks to the die and becomes a die cap. This kind of die cap leaves a brockage (an incuse, mirror image) of the reverse design on the coins it strikes. There are even more exotic kinds of die caps that leave more complex images on the coins that they strike. Die caps get progressively thinner as they strike a succession of planchets. You have early-, mid-, and late-stage die caps and, therefore, early-, mid- and late-stage capped die strikes. Late-stage die caps leave no design on the coin but simply allow a raised ghost image to bleed through the thin metal of the cap. You also have early-, mid-, and late-stage brockages and counterbrockages, which don't quite coincide with the stages of cap thinness.
So if I follow you correctly then what I have is a capped die strike that has a counterbrokage? Thanks for the info....I'm definitely enjoying the education.
No. Not a counterbrockage. Your coin was struck through a late-stage die cap. A raised ghost image bled through the thin metal of the cap from the obverse die. Because it was a late-stage cap, there's no telling what sort of image (if any) the reverse face of the cap originally carried. If any image was there, it was obliterated in the course of striking all the planchets that came before your coin. Ghost images are normal-sized. Counterbrockages are expanded and run off the edge of the coin.
oh I think I get it now. the die cap became so thin that the die itself imparted the majority of the design....I think....its hard to visualize
