1938 Doubled Die Reverse DDR-002

Description

Second in the reverse doubled die roster for the 1938 Washington quarter, DDR-002 displays light spread concentrated on most lower serifs of UNITED STATES OF AMERICA — a subtle but attributable doubling on John Flanagan's heraldic eagle reverse that has appeared on the denomination since 1932. VarietyVista documented this die under UVC-0080 and DMR-006, recording three die stages: Stage A at early die state (unconfirmed), Stage B where the reverse is at mid die state and the obverse is listed as DDO-004 at MDS, and Stage C at late die state (unconfirmed). The cross-listing of the obverse as DDO-004 in Stage B reveals this die marriage carries doubled die designations on both sides — a dual-attribution pairing that significantly elevates collector interest because a single coin from this die pair yields two independently attributable varieties. Philadelphia produced approximately 9.48 million Washington quarters in 1938, a Depression-era mintage that ensures moderate scarcity for the date in higher grades. Light spread on lower serifs indicates the hub displacement was small enough that only the most delicate serif extensions — the thin horizontal strokes at the bases of vertical letter strokes — show visible separation between primary and secondary impressions. This serif-concentrated diagnostic means attribution requires careful examination under at least 15x magnification with directed lighting that casts shallow shadows along the serif bases, revealing the displaced secondary impression as a slight thickening or doubling of these fine terminal strokes. The combination of a serif-specific DDR with a confirmed DDO on the paired obverse die makes this 1938 die marriage one of the more compelling dual-variety attributions in the Washington quarter series.

Die Markers

• UVC-0080
• DMR-006
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• Reverse is MDS
• Obverse is LISTED as DDO-004 – MDS
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by Lee Hiemke
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References