My 8yo just started collecting coins, which makes me happy. His first focus has been wheat cents. We were going thru some of his circulation finds, and I saw this cent with some obvious issues on the reverse and collar. Anyone want to take a stab at the problem? It looks like a lamination issue to me, an incomplete layer or something. The issue extends along the lower left of the reverse, and continues into the collar. I know it's beat to hell, so I'm not expecting much in valuation. But if it's indeed a mint error, it's kinda a big deal as his first error coin. Thoughts?
Lots of environmental damage, but that is definitely a lamination crack in my opinion. Perhaps even a detached lamination near the bottom rim. Nice find!
Thanks for the look! I'm inspecting the obverse, and it almost looks like signs of a weak die strike at the edges where the collar shows the issues as well. Makes sense if there's a missing lamination layer.
Yes it is. It's in rough shape but keep it in that condition. Congrats to him! The first Mint Error I ever found was a Lamination. I made the mistake of cleaning it. That was 37 years ago! I had it attributed by NGC a few years ago..
Maybe try a long acetone soak to remove some of the gunk. It won't hurt the coin, but don't rub the surface, just rinse and pat dry after the soak. It may improve the condition of the coin and make the lamination easier to see.
