I found these two coins while going through a couple of boxes the other day. One I thought was after-mint damage until I turned it over and saw the definite impression of a "C", an "E", and an "N" on the rim. The other I can't really tell if it is a clipped coin or not. Any help or opinion would be great.
It looks like post-strike damage in both cases. The incuse letter impressions represent some kind of "squeeze job". The other coin shows no metal flow in the letters adjacent to the edge deficit. Nor does it show the expected fadeout and taper of the design rim as the latter approaches the deficit.
The incuse letter impression is what made me think it was a mint error. Are you speculating that maybe a coin counting machine for example pressed the "CEN" into the rim and shaved off the obverse edge of the coin at the same time? Couldn't this have happened in the minting process as well? I think that the impression of the "C" on the "O" would look different if it were just a squeeze job. It looks like it was minted that way. Anyway, you're the authority here, would you like a closer look at the coin?
I sometimes happens that coins are squished together in mint machinery after the strike. Such coins can be found in mint-sewn bags. But it's still post-strike damage that's easily duplicated outside the mint. Design impressions of such "false brockages" can be light or heavy. Your coin has none of the characteristics of a genuine brockage.
O.K. O.K. I give up. Thanks for your help and insight. It's always best to go to the experts I always say.
