D Over S Mint Mark Not Possible So What Is This? (1983 D Cent)

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

Author	Replies: 13 / Views: 1,686
Shorzy Valued Member United States 51 Posts	Posted 02/18/2023 9:35 pm Hi CC I know from a previous thread that the mints stopped sharing dies in the 50's but this looks like a D over an S to me. It isn't... so any idea what it might be? Thank you for any feedback * Edited by Staff to Add Year / Mintmark / Denomination to Title. It's very important to have in the title. * Report this Post to the Staff

cpfull Pillar of the Community United States 603 Posts	Posted 02/18/2023 9:54 pm I would guess it started as a small plating bubble that split or some other damage and then zinc rot set in. Report this Post to the Staff
Shorzy Valued Member United States 51 Posts	Posted 02/18/2023 9:59 pm So that is what the grey color is? Zink rot? I never heard of that but I see it a lot... Report this Post to the Staff
Earle42 Bedrock of the Community United States 10038 Posts	Posted 02/18/2023 10:57 pm ...and it coincidentally resembles a D/S How much squash could a Sasquatch squash if a Sasquatch would squash squash? Download and read: Grading the graders Costly TPG ineptitude and No FG Kennedy halves https://ln5.sync.com/dl/7ca91bdd0/w...i3b-rbj9fir2 Report this Post to the Staff
kbbpll Pillar of the Community United States 4233 Posts	Posted 02/18/2023 11:14 pm Where did you get the idea that the branch mints were sharing dies? Prior to 1996 Philadelphia controlled all aspects of die making, as far as I know including punching the mint marks on working dies. It doesn't make sense that they would be exchanging dies with mint marks from another mint on them. Regardless, as said it appears to be damage that happens to look like an S. Report this Post to the Staff
John1 Moderator United States 56855 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 05:50 am 1955 is the last year for OMM's. As to die sharing, I would like to read what Mike has to say. John1 Report this Post to the Staff
nickelsearcher Moderator United States 15450 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 06:22 am it's simply plating damage that Pareidolia has us 'seeing' an S. Take a look at my other hobby ... http://www.jk-dk.art Report this Post to the Staff
Coinfrog Bedrock of the Community United States 94367 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 09:37 am to the CCF! Report this Post to the Staff
Shorzy Valued Member United States 51 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 12:03 pm I read a discussion thread in this forum that talked about the sharing of dies between mints. I tried to reply directly to that ongoing discussion but it was too old so I had to start a new topic...even though it was apparently an old topic. If you do a search I am sure you can find it. Report this Post to the Staff
kbbpll Pillar of the Community United States 4233 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 12:41 pm Is this the thread you're referring to? http://goccf.com/t/384571 If so, I think that bit about the branch mints sharing dies amongst themselves is just wrong, and I'd want to see evidence. The branch mints had no die making capabilities until Denver opened its die making shop in 1996 (source Wexler). As far as I know, they did not have any ability to anneal or harden the dies, which would have been required to repunch their own mint mark, nor to my knowledge did they have any of their own punches. Philadelphia exclusively controlled all die making, and it was tightly controlled. As you might imagine - you don't want coin dies passing around willy-nilly and getting "lost." What did happen is that some dies returned to Philadelphia (or never shipped) were reused (mint mark polished off, repunched), or mistakes with the mint marks were corrected by punching over them. If I'm wrong about any of this I'm open to factual sources to correct my understanding. Report this Post to the Staff
Dearborn Moderator United States 96553 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 12:44 pm Well, while it looks like a D over a rotated S, it is not. This looks more like split plating and resulting zinc blister that broke open. Collecting since 1972. Learning from then on "Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn." - Benjamin Franklin 7070 type set coin count: 51/76 Uncirculated American Silver Eagles My American Silver Eagle Proof Collection Sacagawea Dollars Innovation Dollars Eisenhower-Dollars Kennedy-Half Dollars Washington-Quarters Roosevelt-Dimes Buffalo-Nickels 1938-2005 Jefferson-Nickels Lincoln-Cents Report this Post to the Staff
datadragon Pillar of the Community United States 1648 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 4:32 pm Zinc rot is like the equivalent of a zombie, dead but not as its still spendable. In 1982 when the rising cost of copper made the cent more expensive to produce than its face value, a new composition of copper-plated zinc was adopted for the cent. These cents had a core composed of 99.2% zinc and 0.8% copper, with a plating of pure copper. It is a very unstable combination. Often around the mintmark, small breaks of the plating occur as the coin is struck. That spot is a prime target area for corrosion to begin under the copper plating. The splitting of the copper plating on post 1981 Lincoln cents usually led to an exposed zinc core which in turn formed this protective layer of zinc bloom or Hydrozincite (zinc carbonate) that you see which has formed over a split in the platting. If that coin went into circulation, the normal use would cause that protective layer to be removed and a process of reformation would begin anew. The continuous handling of the coin would have a recurrence of these events, but with an increasing size of the affected area See: https://www.error-ref.com/zinc-dete...ncoln-cents/ Edited by datadragon 02/19/2023 4:35 pm Report this Post to the Staff
Cujohn Pillar of the Community United States 7174 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 8:37 pm I will admit that with all the D over S and S over Ds we've seen, this one is the most believable. But not posable. Report this Post to the Staff
Shorzy Valued Member United States 51 Posts	Posted 02/24/2023 02:07 am Thanks for all of the feedback!!! Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 13 / Views: 1,686

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

All Forums Category: US Coins and Currency Forums Forum: US Modern Variety and Error Coins

Silver Gold Bull US is the United States leading bullion dealer. We deliver gold coins, gold bars, silver coins, silver bars and precious metals to your door. Order today!

The First Dollar, your premier source for bullion and rare coins. See our bullion list on the site and the coin inventory on ebay.

View Last 100 New Topics

View Last 100 Active Topics

Disclaimer: While a tremendous amount of effort goes into ensuring the accuracy of the information contained in this site, Coin Community assumes no liability for errors. Copyright 2005 - 2026 Coin Community Family- all rights reserved worldwide. Use of any images or content on this website without prior written permission of Coin Community or the original lender is strictly prohibited.
Contact Us | Advertise Here | Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

Coin Community Forum

It took 0.37 seconds to rattle this change.