2001-D 1C Cent Muled with a Dime Reverse Die MS65 Red PCGS....

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2001-D Lincoln Cent, MS65 Red
Muled With a Roosevelt Dime Reverse

2001-D 1C Cent Muled with a Dime Reverse Die MS65 Red PCGS. A mule is a coin struck from mismatched dies. In the long history of the U.S. Mint, if patterns are excluded, a total of perhaps 30 to 40 mules are known. Best known of all is the circa 2000 "golden" dollar / quarter mule that pairs a Washington state quarter obverse and a Sacagawea dollar reverse on a Sacagawea dollar planchet. About twenty examples of that mule are confirmed, and they regularly command six figures at auction. The state quarter / Sacagawea dollar mule was ranked #1 in the 100 Greatest U.S. Error Coins (2012) reference.

Among a multitude of mule possibilities, the Lincoln cent / Roosevelt dime mule is most likely to occur. The diameters for the cent and dime are similar, and both types have annual mintages that often exceed a billion or more pieces. Nonetheless, mules are great rarities. We know of only seven cent / dime mules:

1. A 2001-D Lincoln cent obverse and a Roosevelt dime reverse on a Lincoln cent planchet. MS65 Red PCGS. The present coin.
2. Another. MS66 Red PCGS. FUN Signature (Heritage, 1/2024), lot 4450.
3. Another. MS66 Red PCGS. U.S. Coins Signature (Heritage, 8/2024), lot 4259.
4. Another. MS66 Red PCGS. Long Beach Signature (Heritage, 6/2021), lot 3158; MS65 Red PCGS. Long Beach Signature (Heritage, 9/2024), lot 3094.
5. Another. MS66 Red PCGS. Long Beach Signature (Heritage, 6/2021), lot 3158.
6. Another. MS65 Red PCGS. Long Beach Signature (Heritage, 2/2022), lot 3133.
7. Another. MS65 Red PCGS. Dallas Signature (8/2022), lot 3984.
8. A 1999 Lincoln cent obverse and a Roosevelt dime reverse on a Lincoln cent planchet. MS66 Red PCGS. Bellaire Collection; Central States Signature (Heritage, 4/2006), lot 5271.
9. A 1993-D Lincoln cent obverse and a Roosevelt dime reverse on a Lincoln cent planchet. MS65 Red PCGS. Alfred V. Melson Collection; FUN Signature (Heritage, 1/2010), lot 2383.
10. A 1995 Lincoln cent obverse and a Roosevelt dime reverse on a Roosevelt dime planchet. MS64 NGC. Alfred V. Melson Collection; FUN Signature (Heritage, 1/2010), lot 2384.

Probably, the seven known 2001-D cent / dime mules were struck on the same day, by the same die pair, on the same press. The dime reverse on the present fire-orange example features the characteristic broad rim with raised and recessed elements. The wider rim on the reverse is caused by the comparatively narrow diameter of the dime die. The letters in GOD WE TRUST are lightly brought up as seen on most examples, but the remainder of the strike is sharp.

Over the years, Heritage has auctioned all seven known examples of the 2001-D cent / dime mule, and it is interesting to compare images of these coins. The present lot appears to possess above average eye appeal, because most of the other coins display many minuscule toning flecks or spots. The copper-plated zinc planchet shows tiny trapped gas bubbles similar to those that affect the #7 coin from the list above, in this case appearing as small lumps on and around Lincoln's collar. If nothing else, these lumps are useful for pedigree markers. The appearance of a 2001-D cent muled with a dime is always an important opportunity for the advanced error specialist.

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