1818 Cent Error List with Pictures
An exceptionally well-preserved 1818 cent with a ring of raised cracks sold for $9,400 in January 2013. Much of that price came from its remarkable condition, rather than the cracks alone.
This 1818 penny error list covers estimated whole-coin values of $30–$10,000. Smaller flaws can cost much less than a top-quality copper coin.
Compare the missing metal, loose flakes, and extra designs below to see what each feature means. These examples belong to the large Coronet Head, or Matron Head, cent.
1. 1818 Coronet Head Cent Clipped Blank
A collector shared an 1818 large cent with a missing edge section in a discussion of early coin errors. The report identifies a clipped blank but gives no direction for the gap.
A blank is the copper disk used to make a coin. If part of that disk is absent before striking, the finished design meets an incomplete outline.
Cutting a finished cent can produce a similar shape. The edge must therefore support the explanation, not merely look unusual.
The reported photograph does not supply a measured percentage. That number should come from the actual specimen.
Estimated Value
Estimate $30–$250 for a worn, genuine clipped cent and $250–$800 for a clearer example with better surfaces. The ranges include the ordinary value of the 1818 coin itself.
An unworn 1852 clipped large cent sold for $384 in June 2024. That different-date result gives a useful comparison, without providing a sale price for the collector’s 1818 example.
An original gap and readable identity matter more than a large missing area caused by later cutting.
How to Identify
A low weight can result from either an original clipped blank or later cutting. For a loose coin, use a scale against the original 10.89 grams, but do not let that result decide the cause.
Use calipers across intact areas against roughly 28–29 millimeters. Keep the date, Liberty, and ONE CENT in full photographs before enlarging the opening.
Follow the gap and both ends through a 10× magnifier. Saw marks or filed surfaces crossing finished detail would suggest metal removed after minting.
Compare the remaining plain edge with the gap’s wall, and examine the opposite border for supporting weakness. Heavy wear can obscure those clues, so do not require every early copper clip to have a perfect textbook appearance.
2. 1818 Coronet Head Cent A Flake at Liberty’s Chin
A small area on Liberty’s chin can reveal a weakness inside the copper. The 2022 Early American Coppers catalog describes a shallow lamination there on an 1818 cent.
Lamination means that part of the metal separated into a thin flake or layer. It differs from a scratch made across the finished surface.
PCGS graded this N-10 example MS62 Red and Brown, meaning unworn with marks and some original copper color. N-10 identifies its stamping-tool pairing.
The catalog also notes fine scratches over ONE on the back. Those marks are separate from the chin flaw.
Estimated Value
For a clear, genuine lamination, estimate $50–$300 on a worn 1818 cent and $300–$1,200 on a sharper coin. The overall preservation remains a major part of the price.
An 1841 large cent with a front lamination sold for $564 in December 2021. That other year offers context rather than a result for the chin-flaw specimen.
The 1818 catalog questioned its color despite the holder grade. A buyer should consider that surface assessment when comparing attractive red-and-brown coins.
How to Identify
Find Liberty’s chin and examine it with a 10× magnifier under a low lamp. Look for a shallow separation within the copper instead of a smooth high point worn down by circulation.
If any flake remains attached, leave it alone. Its boundary can help explain the defect.
Turn the coin over and record the fine lines above ONE independently. Scratches on one face do not prove that a shallow feature on the other has the same cause.
A loose intact cent started near 10.89 grams and 28–29 millimeters; use a scale and calipers without touching fragile copper. Inspect the plain edge as well.
Keep a graded coin sealed and compare it through the holder. For a loose coin, avoid resting the affected chin directly on a hard surface.
3. 1818 Coronet Head Cent A Thirty-Percent Off-Center Strike
The design of one recorded 1818 cent shifts toward two-thirty, between the top and right of the upright coin. A large unstruck area remains beside it.
The blank missed its proper position before the press delivered the blow. Part of the intended design landed beyond the copper disk.
A dealer catalog in Mint Error News describes this example as thirty percent off center and ANACS G6. That grade indicates heavy wear.
It also records a cut across Liberty’s face. The cut is later damage, not part of the original off-center strike.
Estimated Value
Estimate $200–$800 for a worn, dated off-center cent and $800–$4,000 for a sharper, attractive example. The face cut would reduce the reported coin’s appeal.
The older catalog gave a $395 minimum bid, not a completed sale. That distinction matters when comparing its figure with auction results.
A thirty-percent off-center cent attributed to 1808 brought $6,462.50 in February 2018. Its lighter wear and different year make it a higher comparison, not a price for this damaged 1818 cent.
How to Identify
Find the date while the front is upright, then compare the shift with the reported two-thirty direction. Keep the whole outline visible rather than cropping the photograph to the remaining portrait.
The back should show a corresponding division between struck and unstruck metal. Both faces need to explain the same misplaced blank.
For a loose cent, use a scale against 10.89 grams and calipers against roughly 28–29 millimeters. Check the plain edge for trimming.
With a 10× magnifier, inspect the unstruck copper for grinding or removal of old lettering. That would differ from metal never reached by the tool.
Record the cut across Liberty’s face separately. It damages an existing design and should not be mistaken for the boundary of the off-center strike.
4. 1818 Coronet Head Cent Two Centered Strikes with a Large Turn
A coin does not have to move off center to be struck twice. One 1818 cent received two centered impressions with a large turn between them.
Part of the earlier lowest hair curl survives inside the fourth and fifth stars. An earlier E from ONE appears between the later O in ONE and E in CENT.
The first impression is nearly upside down relative to the final design. Its date is not visible and should not be demanded as proof.
Heritage suggested the coin may have returned for another strike later, rather than receiving two immediately consecutive blows.
Estimated Value
This 1818 double strike sold for $546.25 in January 2005. NCS described light-wear detail but also improper cleaning.
Estimate $350–$1,500 for readable worn or surface-impaired examples and $1,500–$5,000 for strong, attractive double strikes. These are whole-coin estimates, not an amount per impression.
The recognizable older design makes the recorded example useful for comparison. Cleaning still affects its value, even when the striking mistake is dramatic and easy to follow.
How to Identify
Find the extra E between the later ONE and CENT on the back. Use a 10× magnifier to follow its shape, then compare the older hair curl near stars four and five on the front.
A loose cent can be weighed against 10.89 grams and measured with calipers against roughly 28–29 millimeters. Inspect the plain edge for seams or later alteration, leaving a graded example sealed.
Trace how both older features fit a large turn between two centered impressions. A ghost line from clashing tools or a sunken mirror dent from later pressure would not explain the same pattern.
The final back design also tilts about thirty degrees counterclockwise, or to the left, after a controlled top-to-bottom turn. Keep that smaller tilt separate from the nearly inverted relationship between the two strikes.
5. 1818 Coronet Head Cent Raised Cracks and Rim Cuds
Raised cracks can circle the date and stars on the front of an 1818 cent. Other examples show a back crack near UNI or a broad raised patch above NITED.
All begin with damaged steel in a die, the stamping tool. Copper fills the opening when the design is pressed into the blank.
A narrow crack makes a line. When a larger tool section breaks away at the edge, it leaves a rim-connected patch called a cud.
The reported front and back patterns belong to different examples. A coin should be matched to its own visible pattern.
Estimated Value
Estimate $30–$300 for ordinary worn crack examples and $300–$1,500 for appealing larger breaks. Exceptionally preserved whole coins can reach an estimated $1,500–$10,000.
A PCGS MS66 Brown N-10 cent with circular cracks sold for $9,400 in January 2013 and $8,700 in August 2020. Both results concern the same exceptionally well-preserved coin.
The auction record values that complete cent. It does not make an ordinary crack worth thousands by itself.
How to Identify
Check a raised patch for added solder, a seam, or an impact that pushed rim copper onto the face. A 10× magnifier can show where the original design stops at the patch without scraping it.
For a loose cent, use a scale and calipers against 10.89 grams and roughly 28–29 millimeters. Inspect the plain edge and the corresponding area on the opposite face.
Then select the matching pattern: circular date-and-star cracks, the UNI back crack, or a larger rim break. The N-2 back cud reaches NITED and nearly the next S.
A separate report places a front cud from star two to between stars four and five. Do not require that front patch on the N-10 coin with circular cracks or on the N-2 back-cud example.
Conclusion
An 1818 cent can show a flaw inside its copper, an incomplete strike, or marks left by a damaged tool. Estimated values here run from $30–$10,000, with exceptional preservation explaining the highest whole-coin prices.
Follow the actual shape before naming the error. Keep the facial cut, cleaning, and back scratches separate from mint-made features, and compare each example with photographs showing the complete coin.