1873 Misplaced Date WMPD-001

Description

A stray digit 7 visible in the denticles below the 73 of the date reveals that the date punch was initially struck too low before being corrected on this 1873 Seated Liberty Dime — the only Wexler-cataloged misplaced date for the year. Misplaced dates occurred during an era when each digit of the date was individually hand-punched into the working die by an engraver at the Philadelphia Mint. If a digit punch landed in the wrong position, the engraver would reposition and strike again, but the initial errant impression remained in the die steel, producing a faint ghost digit in an unexpected location. On WMPD-001, the misplaced 7 appears among the denticles — the tooth-like border elements surrounding the design — proving the punch initially struck below the intended date position. This die also carries extremely strong doubled die obverse characteristics: WDDO-001 shows dramatic northwest spread on the shield and LIBERTY banner, making this a dual-attribution variety of exceptional interest. The Cherrypickers' Guide lists it as FS-10-1873-101, and Fortin catalogs it as F-103, providing multiple reference paths. The Seated Liberty Dime series, designed by Christian Gobrecht and minted from 1837 through 1891, was approaching its final two decades when this die was prepared, and the hand-punching techniques responsible for misplaced dates would eventually be supplanted by master die methods that eliminated such errors.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Not noted Cross References: Fortin: F-103, Cherrypickers: FS-10-1873-101
• Fortin: F-103, Cherrypickers: FS-10-1873-101; Wexler Variety ID: 1873 10¢ WMPD-001
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References