There are some interesting cracks on this Morgan that run around 1/4 of the circumference, with a peak between the E & P in "E Pluribus" & through the date. Would these be called die chips or die cracks? Is there a bright line dividing the two, or are they subjective jargon?
Die cracks are very common on Morgan dollars because it takes 130+ tons of pressure to strike them. Chris
Have you looked at VAM comparisons? Go to the attached http://www.vamworld.com/wiki/1921-P_VAMs I sent you to the 21 P you should use the index and go to the 21 D Sorry
Nice die cracks. Cracks run in small to large lines where as chips are confined to a small area. The amount of pressure that is used to create silver dollars led to many a cracks on the coins.
A really good question, actually. What I see on your coin is a bunch of die cracks. Die chips are when little pieces of die become missing. These may or may not be connected to die cracks. Die breaks are cracks that have widened a bit or that are showing pieces of the die starting to fall away. The difference between a break and a crack may vary depending on what series you are looking at, but the distinction was made for Morgan and Peace dollars to draw a line as to what would be considered when listing a variety and what would not. Die breaks are considered, die cracks, which are very common, are not. This does not mean that cracks cannot be used to attribute a coin, as they may be more obvious die markers, especially in pictures. For 1921, people have put together a die crack guide that can make attribution relatively quick. Here's one for 1921-D, although it's probably not complete.
