I'm wondering if a high MM like on this 1969 D cent is out of the ordinary. For comparison, I've added two others that I find more commonly, one with the MM aligned with the bottom of the 9 (date), and one with the MM below the 9. I also know that there are some high MM's that are out of the ordinary like on the 1975 D nickel, so perhaps this is similar to that. Maybe most of the MM's punched into the die were not as high (?). Thanks in advance!
Yes, they were punched by hand, but doesn't it have more to do with rarity... so the high MM is just as common when it was punched high vs punched at or below the date is what I'm hearing. I guess this will go into the copper baggy. Below is the rare 1975 D nickel with a high MM I was referencing. It's punched by hand, too, I believe, but it's much rarer than the other MM placements.
Everything I've heard is the MM needs to touch the date to really command any premium. There are a ton of wheats where the MM is just a smidge away from touching.
Each die had the MM hand punched. the MM could be anywhere under the date. There would be no rarity in this as each die is used until it is very well worn, even broken. This particular die struck just as many coins as any other die with that date and MM.
