That was my first thought, but look at how perfect the lines still are. No nicks, scrape marks, or other notes of impact.
This. Its always tough when such a coin circulates afterwards. The bright red gouge mark disappears, and any metal raised to the surface gets worn off by handling. If you would have seen this coin the day the gouge happened it would have been clear.
Your first thought was correct...go with your gut instinct and study How Dies Are Made on Wexler’s website. Full copper alloy coins are very malleable, doesn’t take much to move the metal around...Spark
I use a 1.5 year old cell phone as both scope and camera. My pictures are only ok because I have formal training in picture/video techniques and formats.
Copper is soft and in the form of coins it's easily moved. You Coin took a hit and the circulation wear has smoothed out the damage so what you see is how it appears. It's neat looking but worn damage. Keep it as a training piece.
Being a real copper cent, hits can move things around a lot and then any possible high spots can wear down so it doesn't look like an obvious hit. I love the look it took on, but must agree it is just PMD, but I'd put it in a 2x2 and hang on to it for it's look.