It's not a cud because the area missing is indented not raised like a cud would be. The rim is intact on the reverse also.
Very cool, and I agree it looks like a cud over a lamination error. The cud is the result of a portion of the reverse die which broken off leaving a portion of the reverse un-struck. The diminished pressure on the reverse, due to the broken die, causes a corresponding soft strike on the obverse.
Then I would say it's a lamination, or rather a delamination, error. This is more common on earlier copper, a large piece of the copper planchet delaminates and falls away after/during striking.
looks like someone may have tried to remove the clad layer with a cutting torch or something with high heat source and goofed it up. now I'm just guessing here. the thin clad layers off coins and missing clad coins sell for good prices. anything that sells easily is usually corrupted by someone that tries to make the item. someone has one on ebay right now with both clad layers almost removed and it was up to about 35.00 last time I looked.
I agree it's not a cud. Does it show any weakness on the opposite side? Like maybe the motto or weakness in the rim. Edit; duh, I just now noticed the obverse pic. I think it was a defective planchet.
It looks like you have a partial missing clad layer with a strikethrough in the same area. What strikes me as odd is that the missing clad layer would account for the weak area on the obverse, but I would have expected the strikethrough to counteract that.
Quick question, there is also something going on by the rim above the second S in states and continuing clockwise towards OF, is that indented as well or is it a cud?
Here's one I found that is somewhat similiar. Notice, like the OP's coin, the void in the planchet caused the weaker struck rim on the reverse directly opposite the void.
The dime is missing a bit of the clad layer. And where you see no design at all on the reverse face, here part of the copper core was absent as well. The Sourth Carolina quarter shows the impression of a rolled-in steel wire. It's actually a carbon-steel bristle from a rotating descaling brush used to clean the strip prior to bonding.
