1913-S Type 2 Buffalo Nickel – Unusual Reverse Diagnostics

[OverPolished]

Hi everyone,

This is my first time posting to the forum. Thank you for providing this resource.

I am preparing a raw 1913-S Type 2 Buffalo Nickel to possibly send in to ANACS because of some unusual features on the reverse. Before initiating the paperwork, I wanted to present the coin to the forum to get your take and collective wisdom.

While the coin displays a heavily weakened / "ghosted" hind leg (which I recognize is notable in its own right, especially for a 1913-S Type 2 Nickel), the most striking anomaly is located across the top reverse.

The tops of the letters of "STATES OF AMER" appear to be consistently cut off parallel to the rim, in such a way that this large set of letters is the same truncated height (usually leaving faint remaining parts of the letters showing). Additionally, the "ER" in AMERICA shows distinct distortion. The reverse rim directly adjacent to these letters remains fully struck and sharp, so my working assumption is that this is not normal wear. Nor does it immediately look like a typical struck-through-grease error due to the sharpness of the truncation.

I have attached full photos of the obverse and reverse and close-up photos of these unusual reverse elements.

I would love to get the community's feedback on whether die abrasion is the cause of this pretty extreme, localized truncation of the legend letters, how this all correlates with the official CONECA Master Listings of Die Varieties, and if this specific combination of features matches an existing indexed CONECA die state.

Thank you in advance for your time and expertise!

[MintErrors]

In my opinion, it almost looks like coin counter damage. It may have been stuck in a machine going in circles forever, and it added a deep line around most of the coin. To me, from what I can see of the coin from the photos provided, it looks like post mint damage, some was done to the coin after it left the US Mint.

If there is a halo style ring around the coin, about the same distace away from the rim, this is probably what it is. It sheared away parts of the devices.

IF, this would have been be an error, not a variety. But I see it as a damaged coin. Varieties are commonly found in multiples, a repetative condition with the making of the die, and it produces many of the same variety. Errors are typically unique.

[OverPolished]

Thank you for that perspective. I appreciate the suggestion to look closely into potential coin counter damage as a cause.

Following your note, I mapped out the perimeter to see how a circular path lines up. While there are a few sporadic areas of flatness near the rim — such as the tops of the E and D in UNITED, and the bottom of the S (and to a much lesser extent the F) in FIVE CENTS — they seem isolated rather than connecting into a single, continuous deep line around the majority of the coin. Other sections near the rim, such as the buffalo's head, tail area, and the areas where the mound above FIVE CENTS meets the rim, appear clear of any mechanical groove or scoring (see attached photos). Because the truncation from STATES through AMER drops so cleanly into a flat field with a sharp shelf (rather than a rough, plowed trench), it seems structurally different from typical machine damage.

You make an excellent point regarding the distinction between unique damage and repeating varieties. However, before we set the coin aside, I want to be absolutely thorough in checking if these diagnostics could represent an extreme mint-made condition.

To that end, does anyone on the forum know if there are any documented 1913-S Type 2 varieties or indexed CONECA die states that exhibit severe die abrasion or similar reverse diagnostics? At the very least, is there a definitive 3 1/2-legged 1913-S variety? The combination of the weak hind leg and the truncated legend makes me wonder if this could be an extreme or unlisted abraded die state. I would be very grateful if anyone with access to the official CONECA Master Listings could check to see if anything of relevance has ever been recorded.