PART IV. Die Errors:

Cuds:

Retained Cuds (with horizontal offset)

Definition: A retained cud is a piece of a die that breaks off completely but is held in place. Retained cuds of the anvil die are held in place by the collar while retained cuds of the hammer die are presumably held in place by the bolts that secure the die in its recess. Retained cuds of the hammer die are much rarer, as die fragments tend to fall out with the assistance of gravity.

In order to diagnose a retained cud, one needs to see vertical displacement and/or horizontal offset. Vertical displacement simply means that the die fragment sinks in below the level of the die face, leaving the coin’s design sitting on a corresponding plateau. Horizontal offset means that the fragment slides along the break, leaving contiguous parts of the design out of alignment with each other on either side of the break.

Depicted below are close up images of a Columbia one centavo with a retained cud. While there is more going on here in addition to the horizontal offset, it is our focus for this illustration.