I found this in a box yesterday, does anyone have any idea what caused the raised line on the three stars over her cap? I know it's just a more common date circulated coin, but I am curious. Plus I really like the capped bust halves and quarters! It doesn't look like a scratch to me, which is a bit of a puzzle, but I don't know what it is. I apologize for my usual bad pictures, but I think I did better than usual so hopefully someone knowledgeable or who has seen something like this can weigh in. Happy Saturday y'all! Tis the season to look through old boxes, fa la la la la, la la, la la!
MIGuy, you may have a real winner on your hands. It appears from the pics that you have the O-105A--a die state of the marriage which was de-listed by the Bust Half Nuts Club in 2020 because none were believed to exist. If you do, you just hit the jackpot.
checking the maibockaddict website, the O105a has a long die crack around the Reverse but does not appear to have an obv. die crack. please verify.
There are a few "Nuts" members who post here and would more than likely be willing to confirm it or at least direct you to someone in your area who could look at it in hand. Frank @Treashunt ? DON'T just ship it off to some TPG (any of them) and expect a conformation. None of them are very good at attribution.
In your third picture it looks like a crack in the planchet. I think there might be some optical illusion going on that makes it look like a fat die crack.
PCGS called this one O-105a: https://coins.ha.com/itm/bust-half-...-27542.s?ic4=ListView-ShortDescription-071515 @MIGuy can you post better pics, also of the reverse? Need to check if the T/I alignment matches with the O-105.
And thus, my statement above about TPGs. The coin you show is 105, not the 105A claimed by PCGS as there is no secondary die crack through the second T in STATES on the reverse. MIGuy's coin is the 105 die marriage; the question is whether or not that crack is on the reverse. It may be wishful thinking on my part, but I believe I see it in the pic.
Are these pics any better for assessment purposes? I very much appreciate the interest and informed insight!
New pics, I don't see the crack through the second T in STATES...no A die state, I'm afraid. Still a nice coin, though.
So, back to the OP's question, what is that on the obverse if not a failing die? I'm not finding anything like it in the O105's I'm seeing online.
It’s a die break. When the die cracks, metal flows into the space when the coin is struck leaving a raised line.
The mark is raised, it's a die break. If it is into the surface of the coin, it's a scratch or maybe a struck through caused by a foreign object on the dies when the piece was struck. Usually marks into the coin are scratches.