1918-S Two Feathers FS-401 38447
I purchased the above coin raw and attributed from Larry Briggs Rare Coins. It is now graded XF45 and attributed Two Feathers variety by PCGS. I have owned other 1918-S 2F buffaloes in the past including two that I submitted and had attributed by PCGS, a VG10 and a VF30. I don’t have an image of the VF30, but the XF45, the VG10, and a raw 1918-S 2F that I own, all seem to have been struck from the same pair of dies – they have the same extensive clash marks.
The 1918-S Two Feather can be a pure 2F as this example shows.
Die 1. 1918-S 2F. At high magnification you see a very smooth surface with no significant abrasion lines where the third feather had been. The mint did a very thorough job removing the third feather, so thorough they even weakened part of the neck nearby. There is no significant wipe present.
The clash that created the need to abrade the die must have been quite strong. There is evidence of abrasion in other areas and there are several remnants of the die clash that were not abraded away before this coin was struck. On the obverse, the area in front of the neck and chin is smooth and slightly raised, indicating clash marks were removed. In addition, the Indian has a clash tear drop in front of the eye, a part of one of the ribbons is missing with vertical die abrasion marks running between the ribbons, and a partial mask consisting of a clash mark running from near the eye to the hair.
On the reverse there is a clash mark that runs through EPU and clear up to the first A in AMERICA. Another set of clash marks are in the area of UNI in UNITED down to the Buffalo’s neck and back. Overall, the mint seems to have paid little attention to the die clash marks on the reverse.
What to look for.
The missing third feather is the primary feature to look for. The strong die clash mark in front of the E of EPU could be used for confirmation.
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