1940-D Doubled Die Obverse DDO-009

Description

Strong spread on OD of GOD, the letters WE, and UST of TRUST makes this ninth documented doubled die obverse for the 1940 Denver Mint Washington Silver Quarter one of the more visually prominent DDO varieties available for the pre-war date. The "strong" classification — the highest spread intensity in the standard grading scale — indicates the doubling should be visible at relatively low magnification and potentially detectable with an unaided eye on sharply struck specimens. VarietyVista catalogs it under UVC-0137 with DMR-010, tracking three die stages: Stage A where both obverse and reverse are in Early Die State, Stage B in Mid Die State (unconfirmed), and Stage C in Late Die State (unconfirmed). The confirmed EDS for Stage A with later stages unconfirmed suggests documented specimens come primarily from early in the die's working life. Denver struck over 2.79 million quarters in 1940, a modest figure that makes varieties from this mint and date less commonly encountered than those from higher-production years. Nine documented doubled die obverses for 1940-D represents significant variety coverage for a relatively low-mintage issue. The affected area — IN GOD WE TRUST — sits at the top of the obverse above Washington's head, where Flanagan positioned the motto in an arc. Strong spread in this region produces clearly separated secondary letter images that collectors can identify with confidence.

Die Markers

• UVC-0137
• DMR-010
• Stage A:
• Obverse and Reverse are EDS
• Stage B:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by Lee Hiemke
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References