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At the ANA show I photographed this 1965 Deep Obverse Die Cap. I could I have used some additional photographic equipment, being it was in a NGC slab, but I think I did a good job of illustrating the example anyway. The coin was an attractive magenta color. It really looks like a red foil bottle cap in person. No idea where one would find such an error. Coin courtesy Mark Lighterman.
So for those of you who are not sure what I have below, I can explain. For one reason or another, a coin stuck to the obverse (Hammer) die. Slowly as the capped die struck coins, the remnants of the reverse design faded. Coins struck by the capped die would have had a incuse brockage strike that would have decreased in strength after every coin struck. Simultaneously, the sides of the coin thinned out and migrated ever upwards around the sides of the die shaft. At this point this particular example became dislodged or was removed by a Mint employee.
If the die cap had stayed on the die, eventually, as the coin continued to thin down, the design of the obverse die would slowly appear on the underside. The die cap would be like a thin foil covering the design of the obverse die face. Struck coins would increasingly take on the characteristics of the normal design. Sometimes there are wrinkles or other distortions from the die cap whose characteristics are seen on struck coins.
Below, you can see the bottom of the die cap shows no indications of the reverse design, but has the nebulous impression of Lincoln emerging. The sides were thin and had a mirror like finish.
So for those of you who are not sure what I have below, I can explain. For one reason or another, a coin stuck to the obverse (Hammer) die. Slowly as the capped die struck coins, the remnants of the reverse design faded. Coins struck by the capped die would have had a incuse brockage strike that would have decreased in strength after every coin struck. Simultaneously, the sides of the coin thinned out and migrated ever upwards around the sides of the die shaft. At this point this particular example became dislodged or was removed by a Mint employee.
If the die cap had stayed on the die, eventually, as the coin continued to thin down, the design of the obverse die would slowly appear on the underside. The die cap would be like a thin foil covering the design of the obverse die face. Struck coins would increasingly take on the characteristics of the normal design. Sometimes there are wrinkles or other distortions from the die cap whose characteristics are seen on struck coins.
Below, you can see the bottom of the die cap shows no indications of the reverse design, but has the nebulous impression of Lincoln emerging. The sides were thin and had a mirror like finish.
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