In part two of this series we left off by looking at Rich Schemmer's multiple-struck bonded pair of dimes that had been struck into a "die cap." I noted that a coin is referred to as a "cap" when it sticks to a die and is multiple struck until it wraps itself around the shank and forms itself into a cap or cup-shape.

As if a bonded pair wasn't enough, Schemmer went on to find a 1998 Lincoln cent cap made up of three bonded cents! The thing looks more like a tattered baseball cap than the traditional die cap error - but it was the unusual that he was seeking. I have to think there is something more that must be said about this fantastic error but the old adages, "pictures speak louder than words"and "seeing it is believing", ring so true here!

Lest anybody think there were no type-errors present at the ANA, Schemmer was able to locate a beautiful 1918 Standing Liberty quarter that was Double Struck in Collar with no rotation between strikes. Because there is no rotation between the strikes, there is no doubling of the design. However, because the second strike failed to seat itself all the way back in the collar, the second strike resulted in a Partial Collar Strike. This is exhibited on the coin as a flared out, broadstruck-looking obverse and a rim with two parallel areas of reeding at different levels or what collectors refer to as a "railroad rim." Refer to the photo of the reeding for a better understanding of what this error type should look like on edge.

Medals with errors were also present and Chuck Wishon of Aurora, Colorado, brought several with major errors on them. One of the more interesting pieces was an Off Center Struck, "1997 Free Willy - Keiko Foundation" medal that was apparently distributed by the Oregon Coast Aquarium. The specific causes of off-centers are many and varied, resulting in the failure of the feeder to seat a planchet properly within the dies. A few causes are improperly prepared planchets with burrs or other errors, a jammed collar and a pile-up of other errors within the striking chamber.

In case you're wondering why I have not shown many die varieties, it's because the pickings were very slim at this show. However, Chris Pilliod of Pennsylvania was able to find an 1871 Indian Head cent with a nice Retained Cud on the reverse. A cud occurs when a portion of the die breaks away from the shank and extends into the design on the face of the die. A cud die break is always complete and is no longer attached to the die. When affecting the upper die it falls away immediately. However, gravity tends to hold broken pieces of die in place, at times for extended periods of time. When this occurs the area within the break will be struck at a different level from the rest of the coin until it falls away or is carried away with a coin. Similar breaks that show a crack entering and exiting from two areas of the rim, but are with the design and field at the same level as the rest of the coin, are referred to as rim-to-rim die cracks or as pre- cud die cracks.

Ken Potter is the official attributor of world doubled dies for the Combined Organizations of Numismatic Error Collectors of America and for the National Collectors Association of Die Doubling. He also privately lists other collectable variety types on both U.S. and world coins in the Variety Coin Register.