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Identified by their S mintmark, cents from the San Francisco Mint have always been popularly collected. For early dates, knowing the shape and position of mintmarks is a useful tool for authenticators, allowing them to discern fakes from genuine examples. For later-date coins, mintmarks are looked at enthusiastically by variety hunters who search for repunched or otherwise unusual mintmarks. Styles and changes of mintmarks over the years are also well-studied. For example, we know that six different S-mintmark styles were used on Memorial cents between 1959 and the end of the series in 2008. Of all the mintmark styles, there is just one that was only used for a single year, and only for part of that year at that: the Clear S, or Type 2, mintmark used on the Proof 1981-S Lincoln cent. By 1979, the punch that imprinted the S mintmark onto dies had filled, becoming an amorphous blob. It was replaced by a clearer, sans serif version, which was used to make Proof coinage for part of 1979, all of 1980, and on into 1981. By 1981, however, it was clear that this punch, too, was wearing and beginning to fill. A new punch, a modest refinement over the previous version, was used to create dies for Proof 1981-S cents for the remainder of the year. This mintmark is referred to as the Clear S or Type 2 mintmark, while the earlier version is called either the Filled S or Type 1. Distinguishing the two types requires a touch of familiarity with the characteristics of both mintmarks. The easiest way to tell them apart is to look at the letter-top of the upper portion of the mark. On the Filled S (Type 1) variety, the letter-top is curved. On the Clear S (Type 2), the top of the letter is a flattened shelf and terminates in a rounded bulb. Magnification is helpful in making this determination. For the Clear S version, the ends of the letter should be distinct from the loops of the S, but this is not always the case, and mintmarks that are slightly filled can be found for this version. Probably because of the limited nature of the improvement, a more squat and traditional serif S was put into use in 1982, making the 1981-S Clear S cent the only Lincoln cent to use this Type 2 mintmark. Initially, the only way to get this cent was as part of the 1981 Proof set. The set was a big seller because the Susan B. Anthony dollar, included in the set, was not issued for circulation that year. Slightly more than four million sets were sold. Roughly one out of every six sets is said to contain a Clear S Lincoln cent, putting the estimated mintage of the variety at about 600,000. Although this does not make it truly scarce, it remains sought-after and widely collected. It is also still possible to pick out unattributed examples from original Proof sets. Finally, one should pay attention to the mintmark on Susan B. Anthony dollars, too, because a 1981-S Clear S dollar (number 58 on this list) is also worth a pretty penny.
Garrett, Jeff; Schechter, Scott. 100 Greatest US Modern Coins (Kindle Locations 3230-3236). Ingram Distribution. Kindle Edition.