I sent this in to pcgs - they said it was not genuine. When I called them to discuss the reason why (just want to know) they would give me no reason and just said it's "not genuine". Surely if they feel its not genuine it must be for a reason OTHER than they have never seen one before. It seems weird someone would double strike the reverse of this year - normally counterfeits try to mimick the legit coin in its entirety. This lincoln cent is very different from the 55 standard DD variety. The obverse is struck different than the regular. My question - if you think its a fake - why? AND should I get a second opinion (other than it doesnt hurt)? Does anyone else agree that pcgs has a "when in doubt throw it out" policy? Thanks in advance http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff82/MCharvet/DD2.jpg http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/ff82/MCharvet/DD-1.jpg
First, if the coin were genuine, there would also be doubling on the Wheat Stalk stems on the Reverse and on Lincoln's profile and on IN GOD WE TRUST on the Obverse! Also, there would also be more significant (better defined) doubling on E PLURIBUS UNUM. Second, the overlapping of the Lettering...especially on "ONE" and the "N" of Cent indicates that whatever metal or other material that was used in making the impression used for the Doubled Image, was in fact softer than the Copper, Tin and Zinc composition of the Cent. This same overlapping, can also be seen slightly on LIBERTY and the Date. Frank
Here is a picture of THE 1955- double die. Noter that the entire observe is doubled. I have no doubt that yours is not the double die and I have no idea how it could occur except by someone playing with it.
I agree---If (and that is a BIG IF) any thing it was double struck....but not the DD. I doubt that they could even remember your coin. They go through thousands of coins every day and by the time it has gone though the system and has gotten back to you they have long forgotten it. Also---they would have to have the coin in hand and looking at it in most cases to tell you any other reason. Speedy
thanks for the responses! I know what the regular DD looks like - but thanks for the photo ;-) I said it did not resemble it at all. Yes I agree a big IF its a double strike not die. Someone commented that the wheat stalks are not double striked but they are as well. the entire reverse is symmetrical with the way it was struck. Also - the entire obverse would not be doubles if it were double struck - the way it was done you can tell that the entire coin was not hit. Also - lincoln IS double struck you jsut cant tell by the photos. His entire chin, nose etc., are lightly double struck and then when it gets to the top - it was not long hitting the coin. What interested me though was the comment that it was done with a different metal. Id like to know more about that
Place a cent between two layers of soft brass and strike it with a sledgehammer. The cent will make an impressioninto the brass and it will also work harden the metal somewhat. Pust another cent between the brass layers in such a way that it s offeset from the two images in the brass. Strike them again with the sledgehammer. The brass is soft enough that it doesn't flatten the images on the coin, but it is hard enough to act as a die and raise a secondary image on the coin. Back in the 1960's there was a guy who used to make fake double and triple struck copper 1943 cents using this method. (Usually overstruck on 1942 cents!) He used normal steel cents to create the incuse images in the brass and then used them on the 1942 cents.
Yup, I believe Conder is correct. Certainly not a DDO/R by any means, but an interesting coin nonetheless. Whoever created that evidently knew what they were doing, and wasn't just smashing coins together in a vice.
I agree that the second strike was delivered by a pair of fake dies. The soft, blended overlap is characteristic of such fakes. A genuine double-strike would show sharp but incomplete penetration of the first strike through the second.
