Welcome to
the Freaky Side of Coin Collecting.
In
numismatics there are many details to look for and many different types of
coins and currency to collect. One area
that is often over looked by the new collector is mint-made errors. Error coins and currency are those lovable
mistakes that are usually caught by the mint before they ever get a chance to
reach circulation. But, no one is
perfect. Sometimes these errors make it
out of the mint, and you are certainly a lucky duck if you find one in your change. Here are a few different kinds of error coins
to look for.
Planchet Preparation Errors
To prepare lancets on which to strike
coins, a mint first purchases strips of metal of the correct composition of the
coin to be produced. These strips are fed through a blanking
machine that cuts them into the metal disks on which the
coins are struck, which are known as blanks or lancets. The
shape of the coin, whether it be circular, rectangular, or any other shape, is
determined by the manner in which the blanking machine shapes the lancets. At
this stage, the blanks are type 1 blanks. Next, these type 1 blanks go into an
upending mill, which gives the blanks an upended rim, which is where the rim becomes slightly raised and rounds
off to the center of the lancet. Lancets with upended rims are called type 2 lancets.
Clipped Planchet
Occasionally a misdeed can occur where the
strip of metal is not fed through the blanking machine far enough. When this
happens, the punches strike an area of the strip which overlaps the hole left
by the previous strike. The result is a blank with a piece missing, which is
called a clipped lancet. A clipped lancet may
be
straight,
curved,
ragged, or
elliptical.
Die Crack,
Break, Chip or Clash
When the
coin is stamped with the die, there are a multitude of problems that could occur. A die crack will result in a coin that has a
raised, jagged line on its surface. A
die break or chip will show a raised unstuck area on the coin. And a die clash
which occurs when the obverse and reverse dies strike each other because a lancet
is not between them. Due to the tremendous pressure used, the parts of the
image of one die may be impressed on the other. When lancets are then fed
between them the resulting coins receive the distorted image. A well-known
example is the "Bugs Bunny" Franklin
Half Dollar of 1955, where part of the eagle's wing from the reverse
gives Franklin the image of protruding teeth.
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| "Ehhh What's Up Doc?" |
Overate/Repented
Date or Mint Mark
This can
happen either by accident or intentionally.
In the past, to save money the mint would use a die until it broke. When the years would change, the dies were
altered to show the new year. This
resulted in a faint previous date to show on the coin. As for mintmarks, a die technicians punch
the coins with a mint mark. If the first
punch is faint the technician would stamp the coin again.
Double
strike
If
a coin fails to be properly ejected from the striking chamber after being stuck
and the dies come down again to strike the coin again, a double strike occurs.
Double strikes can occur with the second strike off center or on-center. In the
same way triple and multiply struck coins occur.
Missing
Clad Layer
A
clad coin with one of the clad layers missing either before the coin is struck
or which is loose and falls away after the strike. The side of the coin with
the clad layer missing will be copper colored showing the exposed copper core
of the coin. The other side of the coin is normal.
Split
Planchet
If
the impurity is severe enough, it can case the lancet to split into two halves obi.
and rev. If the lancet splits before the strike, the resulting coin will be
thin and have detail on both sides but often intermingled with rough striations
from the impurities. If the lancet splits after the strike, one side will have
full detail and the other side will be blank and striated. In either case the
coin will be thin.
Lamination
Dirt
and impurities in the metal of the lancet can manifest themselves as cracks and
peels on the struck coin.
Butterfly
Fold
Fold along the corner of a note which after the cutting
process results in an excess flag of paper, sometimes roughly resembling a
butterfly's wing.
Double Denomination
Error note featuring mismatched front and back values (eg.
$10 face design with a $5 back design)
Missing Printing
When currency is printed, it is printed in a series of
passes. Sometimes bills are released
missing first, second or third printing.
Which results in missing serial numbers, seals or detail.
Star Note
Modern
note with a star symbol in the serial number distinguishing it as a replacement
for a note that was removed because it contained a flaw that was caught. Please
note, early U.S. currency, generally before Series 1899, often contain stars
and other symbols as part of the normal serial number and do not represent
replacement issues.
There
are many more errors to look for but this is enough to get you started. Once you get bitten by the error
coin/currency bug you will start looking through your collection to see if you
have any errors. Once considered
mistakes, these errors make the coins just a bit more special.
I have always been fascinated by fiction. In the
simplest form it's an elaborate lie told to entertain us; a fish story as it
were (Hemingway fans should find this funny). Some writers are more
honest (Hunter S. Thompson comes to mind) and lead daring lives, do crazy
things, nearly kill themselves on several occasions, and then write about their
adventures. Other authors create entirely fiction worlds and situations
from the comfort of their home and use them to act out fantasy sometimes for
their satisfaction as much as ours. The best authors, like Hemingway, do
both of these things to create something not quite fact and not quite fiction
but somehow better then both.
Hemingway.
Simply mentioning his name conjures up images of cigar smoke and scotch,
romantic European battlefields, safaris to the wildest corners of Africa,
and... well, six-toed cats. Born and raised in the well-to-do Chicago
suburb of Oak Park, Hemingway left home for a lifetime of travel while still a
teen. He drove an ambulance in WWI. Hung out in Paris with the greatest poets,
authors, and artists of the 20s. Worked as a field reporter during the Spanish
Civil War. Watched the Normandy Invasion from on deck of a landing craft.
Nearly died in a plane crash while on safari in the Congo (twice). Then went on
to write books about all of these events, and not just books but masterpieces
that make us ask who and what we are, where and when we should do something
about it, and, most importantly, why.
