Could also be a greased filled die in that area. Usually with a polished die you would see raised lines in the area I don't see them here. JC
It's from a polished die. It can't be from grease filling because the missing details are on a HIGH area of the die (Yes it is on the design which is normally considered to be incuse but the design has high and low areas as well. The earlobe would be the deepest point of the die while the area of missing detail next to it would be one of the highest points in the design and nearly at the same level as the the field.) A grease fill on a high point like this would be unlikely since the material could easily be forced into the adjacent low area of the die during the strike.
From the photo it is hard to tell - is the area lacking detail raised above/level with Abe's beard or is it below or level with Abe's neck?
If the area lacking detail is at neck level or lower - i would say it is a filled die. Polishing removes surface from the die and although deminishes detail would set the design deeper into the die but produce a surface raised higher on the coin.
It's definitely a case of overzealous intentional die abrasion ("die polishing"). This is a very common area for it to show up. Die polishing lines are not always present.
