1937 Doubled Die Obverse WDDO-003

Description

Cataloged by the Wexler Team as 1937 10¢ WDDO-003 and cross-referenced as CONECA 3-O-IV+VIII, this Mercury Dime doubled die obverse carries dual-system attribution with an unusually complex CONECA classification indicating a combination of two distinct hub doubling classes on a single die. The CONECA designation 3-O-IV+VIII specifies that both Class IV (Offset Hub Doubling) and Class VIII (Tilted Hub Doubling) are present simultaneously — a relatively uncommon compound variety where the working hub was both laterally shifted and angularly tilted between impressions, creating a doubling pattern that combines the directional characteristics of both mechanisms. Class IV offset produces consistent directional spread across the die face, while Class VIII tilt generates displacement that varies based on distance from the tilt axis, and the interaction of these two displacements produces a compound geometry more complex than either class alone. Adolph Weinman's Mercury Dime obverse — more accurately described as a Winged Liberty Head, depicting Liberty wearing a winged Phrygian cap symbolizing freedom of thought — features the profile portrait flanked by IN GOD WE TRUST and LIBERTY with the date below. The 1937 Mercury Dime was struck in 90% silver and 10% copper, weighing 2.50 grams with a diameter of 17.91 mm and a reeded edge, produced at the Philadelphia Mint during the Great Depression. The third documented doubled die obverse position for the 1937 date places WDDO-003 among the early catalog entries for this year, and the compound Class IV+VIII mechanism makes it diagnostically distinctive within the broader population of Mercury Dime doubled die varieties.

Attribution History

• Discovered by John A. Wexler Cross References: CONECA: 3-O-IV+VIII
• CONECA: 3-O-IV+VIII; Wexler Variety ID: 1937 10¢ WDDO-003
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References