Does anyone know anything about errors where the coin split in half after struck at the mint

Comments

• grip Posts: 9,962 ✭✭✭✭✭

  July 30, 2016 3:42AM

  Picture would help.

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• Insider2 Posts: 14,452 ✭✭✭✭✭

  July 30, 2016 4:11AM

  I've seen this mostly on war nickels. Make sure it is not pried apart. Sometimes. coins with split edges are "opened" with a tool to make a major error. These have metal gouges protruding into the coin. The split halves I've seen are NEVER smooth and can be "fit" together. Often a "ghost" image remains and the metal is streaked and flaky looking on the split portion.

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• BillJones Posts: 34,585 ✭✭✭✭✭

  July 30, 2016 4:28AM

  I had a Wartime nickel years ago, and I had both sides. I sold for way too little when I was starting out as a dealer to a error coin dealer specialist. I think I have slides of it somewhere, but it would be had to find.

  Retired dealer and avid collector of U.S. type coins, 19th century presidential campaign medalets and selected medals. In recent years I have been working on a set of British coins - at least one coin from each king or queen who issued pieces that are collectible. I am also collecting at least one coin for each Roman emperor from Julius Caesar to ... ?

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• keets Posts: 25,351 ✭✭✭✭✭

  July 30, 2016 4:31AM

  clamshell??

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• ricko Posts: 98,724 ✭✭✭✭✭

  July 30, 2016 4:51AM

  I have not seen fully split coins... I have seen pictures of partial... called clamshells... Cheers, RickO

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• jonathanb Posts: 3,721 ✭✭✭✭✭

  July 30, 2016 5:08AM

  They're rare in the general sense, but not very popular so not very expensive. Worth maybe a few hundred dollars if you have both halves, some tens of dollars if you only have one half.
  
  A true split planchet will always have a rough back surface. If you have something with s smooth, flat backside it was ground down outside the mint.
  
  Three ways to break a coin

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