1942 (S) Jefferson Nickel - Wartime Silver Alloy - Repunched Mintmark RPM-013

Description

Documented by VarietyVista, the 1942-S Jefferson Nickel RPM-013 is a repunched mintmark variety on the Wartime Silver Alloy issue from the San Francisco Mint, cataloged as UVC-464 with die marker record DMR-014. Die stage progression tracks three states: Stage A with both reverse and obverse in early die state (EDS), Stage B at mid-die-state (unconfirmed), and Stage C at late die state (unconfirmed). The confirmed EDS for Stage A indicates the earliest known specimens preserve fresh die surfaces where the repunching evidence remains at maximum clarity. The 1942-S wartime nickel is among the first coins struck in the emergency 56% copper, 35% silver, and 9% manganese composition at the San Francisco facility, which bore a large S mintmark above Monticello on the reverse to distinguish the wartime alloy from standard copper-nickel issues. Felix Schlag’s design of Jefferson’s portrait and Monticello appears on each 5.00-gram, 21.2 mm diameter coin. The San Francisco Mint’s transition to wartime alloy production in 1942 involved adapting die preparation procedures to accommodate the new mintmark size and position above Monticello, a placement unlike any previously used on U.S. five-cent pieces. The thirteenth cataloged repunched mintmark for the 1942-S date demonstrates the frequency of positioning errors during this transitional period. Repunched mintmarks on wartime nickels are actively collected as a specialty subset within the Jefferson Nickel variety community, and the three-stage die state framework allows collectors to identify where their specimen falls in the die’s production life, with EDS examples commanding particular interest for their sharper mintmark detail.

Die Markers

• UVC-464
• DMR-014
• Stage A:
• Reverse and Obverse are EDS
• Stage B:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

External References