1881-O - Gunk in the denticles under the date?

[TMK]

I am more than a little gun shy posting here. Please see the attached shots. I need to really lean in to identify the specific VAM (spiked 8, doubled first 1 by the flag, etc.) but I am trying initially to identify what in the world is going on in the denticles under the date. The coin is a nice looking PL (or almost PL) 1881-O with very clean fields. Interesting pitting on the REV. I looked at @HawkeEye 1881-O site but I didn’t find anything there re: the denticles under the date.

Please share thoughts or directions. I appreciate the help!

[messydesk]

This happens a lot on coins through 1883. Post the mint mark and the wing-neck gap polishing line detail and we'll get a lot closer.

[keilg1]

Fantastic pictures... but it ain't gunk - it's beauty marks! A huge amount going on with this year and mint, for sure. I have a few head-scratchers that have similar stuff going on. Starting with sharing what JR recommended and continuing to access the amazing repository that @HawkeEye compiled is the way to solve the mystery.

Sorry to hear this starts off with an admission of being a little more than gun shy and posting here. Sure there are the occasional less-than-friendly response (from rather well-known cumudgeons), but they're thankfully much less endured than in the past.

[TMK]

Thanks @keilg1 and @messydesk. Additional photos of the mint mark and neck/wing gap.