Die States

[joecoin]

I am just begining to investigate the different types of die states, i.e. Manley numbers. What I am having trouble understanding is where one die state ends and the next begins. Anyone here have any insight on this?

[coppercoins]

It's not a specific scientific thing, there's no hard lines between them. Generally, for the purpose of this site, there are three main die states...

EDS - Shows little to no wear, softness, around the outer edges of the outer letters on the design. Typically shows very little to no die wear in the fields - die flow lines - or lines that protrude outward from many points on the field.

MDS - Shows minor to moderate wear on the outer edges of the outer letters on the design, and shows some die flow lines around the fields.

LDS - Shows moderate to heavy wear on the outer edges of the outer letters of the design. This wear can be to the point that the outer edges of these letters are completely gone and are nothing but die flow lines that extend to the rim. Most details on the coin will be blunt, mushy, and very indistinct under magnification.

There are many other die states recognized to pinpoint the time in the die's life that certain markers became apparent, and to describe a coin's appearance under magnification from one person to another, but for the purpose of this site, they were extraneous and unnecessary. The whole list as is follows...

VEDS - very early die state
EDS - early die state
EMDS - early-mid die state
MDS - mid die state
LMDS - late mid die state
LDS - late die state
VLDS - very late die state