1997 Lincoln Memorial Cent - What Caused This?

Hi

I would also have to agree in my opinion that this coin most likely
has post mint damage. The collar holds the planchet in position
during the strike. Some coins are struck with no collar. Normal striking will push the metal out and around some. I think I understand what you are getting at though and why. Anything may be possible but I would like to hear what others who know more would say.

I looked closer at those pics. and have changed my opinion.
I beleive those marks (not sure what caused them yet) was
done at the press. They seem too clean and with no other damage
evident in the near surrounding areas. I think if you do not look at
them as possible lettering, you can see maybe tool markings or ?
Maybe this is a test ? :) O.K. who did the garage job ?

Thanks for commenting on this coin.

The markings are indented. Here's another pic without me blocking the background light and you can see the indent.

Thanks for clearing that up Chuck. Then that means I am wrong with my guess that this could only be post mint damage at the rim. I really do appreciate you pointing out the details that I miss. When I answer posts I give details so that when I am wrong I know why and I learn from my reply. Learning when I am wrong is more important to me then being right. All the experts on this site make it a great learning tool and you are certainly one of the experts. Thanks.
So now this has been posted for several days and LilBlue still doesn't have an answer. Can anyone contact Mike or have any ideas what LilBlue can do next. Of course one option is to send the coin to one of the major grading services.

Just to clear up some statements coppercoins states to help me better understand,
" The rim is further assisted by the bevels at the edges of the die, which helps form them "
1st the rim is partially formed before the die strike, and then at the die strike the rim is assisted(or made more defined and finished which would make the rim larger)?

I took a look at this yesterday and my feeling was that it is a stuck through a foreign object. Since the letters (the T and A) were seemingly untouched, this gave me my first indication of what it was. If the letters had some damage, then I would have said post mint. As for the damage to the rim. Chuck is right, the rim is made before the strike, however, it is further formed by the collar which prevents the excess metal from the planchet escaping and making it into a broad strike.

If the foreign object was near the collar when the planchet was struck, I imagine that the impact area would be grooved vertically (movement of the excess metal) as shown above the first T. The second T also appears to have a grooved area on the inside rim which also may be from this anomaly.

It also appears that the die is beveled downward in that area, but that could be from the light's angle.

I just answered a similar question over in CONECA's forum and both Mike Diamond and myself agreed that a strike through is hard to evaluate from a picture. One big clue that Mike did give is that when observing the area that the strike through occurred, there should be no metal higher than the surrounding field where the indent has occurred. This would be pushed metal and indicate post mint damage.

BJ Neff

It almost looks like the date in size. Could you coin be a 2001? I can see (imagine) some of 2001.
I was thinking maybe somehow it got stuck by another coin that flipped into the process of it being stuck just at the edge where the date portion of another might have got caught where the date is located.
A raised date on one coin pressed into another would maybe leave an impression rather than a raised mark. Oh well, just thinking. (See my Disclaimer)