1909 Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-005

Description

Attributed by the Wexler Team, this fifth documented doubled die reverse for the inaugural 1909 Lincoln Wheat Cent shows strong extra thickness on both wheat ears and stems, E PLURIBUS UNUM, and both dots flanking ONE CENT on the reverse. Die markers on the obverse include several die scratches running mostly from west to east through the upper letters of IN; no reverse markers were visible on the examined specimen, which was in XF (Extremely Fine) circulated condition — higher-grade examples may reveal additional diagnostic scratches. The 1909 date holds singular importance as the first year of Victor David Brenner's Lincoln design, commissioned by President Theodore Roosevelt to commemorate the centennial of Lincoln's birth. The inaugural year saw both the V.D.B. and no-V.D.B. reverse variants, and this doubled die reverse is attributed to one of these reverse die variants. No cross-references to other cataloging systems were known at the time of documentation. Five documented doubled die reverses for the first year of the Lincoln series reflects the intensive scrutiny that collectors and researchers have directed at this historically significant date over more than a century of study.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Lou Coles Cross References: None known
• None known; Wexler Variety ID: 1909 1¢ WDDR-005
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References