Die crack or scratch?

digon

I know I am a newbie but this seemed like a good question to ask here. Does the date look funky or what?

airplanenut

It looks like a scratch- but it may be the scan...

If it is raised, then it is a die crack, because a crak in the die means the metal fills it, thus is raised;
If it is a deep gouge, then it is a scratch, because the metal that was once present was scratched away.

Jeremy

TomB

I agree that it certainly looks like a scratch. Jeremy gave you very good information but he left out another plausible explanation for a coin with a depression in it and that is if the coin were struck through a bit of foreign debris on the coin. In this case the coin really does not look like that.

digon

Thanks for the response. It still looks really suspicious to me. If the die was cracked would the rim have a line too? I know the pictures kinda sucks. Left the digicam at work so I will try to post a better pic another time. By the way what year does it look like...a 59 or 39???

FrattLaw

Where's KinCoin when you need him!

Michael

coppercoins

That's just a heavy hit on the coin.

Coulport

Looks like a scratch from a tool used by one of those metal detector guys.

construct

That is a scratch on a 1939 nickel. A die crack doesn't normally cross the rim. A die crack would extend from the rim (or a device) to a device or letter--sometimes passing through several letters as if connecting them. You see the die crack on the field.

MacCoin

scratched

darktone

That is a scratch and the displaced metal from the scratch is raised slighly which is normal for a scratch on metal. mike