1935-S Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-002

Description

Second in the Wexler-documented reverse doubled die census for the 1935-S Buffalo nickel, WDDR-002 displays a Class IV offset hub doubling that spreads westward on the right side of IVE in FIVE and the lower interior curve of the U in UNITED. Class IV doubling results from an offset hub — where the hub shifts laterally between impressions rather than rotating or tilting — producing consistent directional spread across the affected area. James Earle Fraser's iconic bison reverse, with the denomination FIVE CENTS on the exergue below the standing buffalo and UNITED STATES OF AMERICA curving above, provides crisp lettering that readily reveals even modest displacement between hub impressions. San Francisco struck approximately 10.3 million Buffalo nickels in 1935, the penultimate year before the type's replacement by Felix Schlag's Jefferson design in 1938. The westward spread direction indicates the secondary hub impression landed to the left of the primary when viewing the coin in standard reverse orientation, and the selective appearance on the right side of IVE and the lower inside of the U suggests the offset was small enough that only certain letter geometries produced detectable doubling. Cross-references anchor this variety across multiple attribution systems: CONECA lists it as 2-R-IV (the second reverse variety with Class IV doubling), and the Wexler Team catalogs it under Wexler Variety ID: 1935-S 5c WDDR-002. No significant obverse or reverse die markers were documented beyond the doubling itself. Collectors should direct magnification of at least 15x at the right vertical stroke and crossbar junction of the letters I, V, and E in FIVE, where westward displacement will appear as a secondary shadow to the left of each primary stroke, then confirm by examining the inner curve of the U in UNITED for corresponding directional spread.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Leroy Van Allen Cross References: CONECA: 2-R-IV
• CONECA: 2-R-IV; Wexler Variety ID: 1935-S 5¢ WDDR-002
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References