1940-D Repunched Mintmark RPM-004

Description

Documented by VarietyVista, the 1940-D RPM-004 Lincoln Wheat Cent exhibits a D/D Southeast repunched mintmark where the initial D impression was placed slightly northwest of the intended position and a corrective second punch shifted the final placement to the southeast, leaving remnants of the first impression visible to the northwest of the primary D. Die markers UVC-081 / DMR-005 track three progressive stages: Stage A at EDS (unconfirmed); Stage B at MDS with light die scratches running north-south through the date while the reverse is also at MDS — the vertical die scratches through the date numerals likely result from die maintenance where a polishing tool was drawn across the date area in a consistent vertical direction; and Stage C at LDS (unconfirmed). The north-south orientation of the die scratches through the date provides a distinctive authentication marker because the scratches cross multiple numerical digits in a uniform direction, creating a pattern that is readily distinguishable from random circulation marks. The Lincoln Wheat Cent was designed by Victor David Brenner for the obverse, struck at the Denver Mint in 1940 in the standard bronze composition of 95% copper and 5% tin and zinc, weighing 3.11 grams with a 19.05 mm diameter. The 1940-D had a mintage of approximately 81.4 million pieces. Repunched mintmark varieties from the early 1940s Denver production document the manual mintmark application process at the Philadelphia Mint, where each Denver-bound working die received its D through individual hand-punch application — a labor-intensive procedure that generated the positional variations now cataloged and collected as RPM varieties.

Die Markers

• UVC-081
• DMR-005
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• Light die scratches North-South through date – MDS
• Reverse is MDS
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by James Wiles
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References