this penny has a lot of numbers and letters you can almost make them out some you can some just not sure. this is the stuff I think it has on most im sure it has . from the left of lincoln bust it starts with a 1 or an I 902 space mexic or an o vno Lincoln looks like he has feathers I posted a lot of picture hoping you all can get an idea of what has happened to this coin
Wasn't there a write-up recently about a coin found with similar impressed letters on it. Found by a coin dealer in Kentucky, maybe? Anyone remember that?
Nope. Sorry. This one was smashed together with a Mexican coin, as one might guess. Probably in a vise. You can see the feathers of the Mexican eagle. An interesting curiosity, but it's a post-mint alteration, not an error. Value? Whatever someone would offer you for it.
I'm not sure of exactly what type of Mexican coin got pressed together with that cent, but here's the eagle-and-serpent motif used on their coins of that period.
No LM, the coin I was referring to was actually found by a dealer in Kentucky, and it was written up in the Numismatic News, I think. If I'm not mistaken there was a link here on CT. It was referred to as a Discovery coin. I didn't mean to imply that this coin here is that one there.
I posted these new pictures showing the wording of mexico.if this had been in a vise how is it that they the letters have been stamped over . you can see clearly the tops of the letters sticking out. just trying to learn something here. thanks. and if it were a Mexican coin used to press on to the Lincoln cent it should be on top, shouldn't it be ?
Can you post a full picture of each side ?? This partial images I can't really see much. Keep in mind, there is no rule someone has to squeeze an entire coin over another's entire surface. Plus a cent isn't flat, one can easily just squeeze it on one side.
The Lincoln cents was struck normally, the Mexican coin was placed over the cent and squeezed against it causing the letters from the Mexican coin to be pressed into the high areas such as the base of the bust and the rim showing up incuse and reversed. In areas such as the field between the bust and the rim little evidence of the Mexican coin is seen because all the pressure was absorbed by the raised features. Over by the date of the cent the Mexican coin was able to make better contact with the field so more of the lettering was pressed into it in that area. Since there is little evidence at the tp of the cent most of the squeezing pressure was applied at the bottom. This also caused the flattening seen on the reverse of the cent.
The host coin (US cent) being flattened to the point of being slightly misshapen is another hint that this was a vise job.