Lincoln Cent, 1909-1958, Struck thru capped die, 1¢, AU50 BN, NGC

Indian Cent, 1909-1958-1¢, AU50, BN, Struck thru capped die, NGC.

A struck-through capped-die occurs when a previously struck coin remains stuck to a die (forming a “die cap”), and that capped die continues to strike subsequent planchets. Over time the stuck coin cups around the die neck and acts as the striking surface. As the cap’s floor becomes thinner from repeated strikes, the metal flow from each strike “bleeds through” that thin floor — producing a faint, ghost-like, distorted version of the original design on the struck coins.

Coins struck in this manner often show a weak, blurred, or incomplete obverse (or reverse, depending on which die was capped), sometimes with vague, raised “ghost images,” or incuse/shadow impressions of the design — instead of the full, sharply struck design as on a proper strike.