1945 Doubled Die Obverse DDO-004

Description

Cataloged by VarietyVista as UVC-1664 with die-marriage reference DMR-005, this 1945 Philadelphia Lincoln Wheat Cent DDO presents medium extra thickness on the date and WE TRUST — the portions of the obverse where hub misalignment expressed itself most visibly. Three die stages map the working die's progression from fresh steel to retirement. Stage A represents the early die state, though confirmation remains pending. Stage B shows mid-die state, also awaiting confirmation. Stage C is the most diagnostically rich: a die clash at Lincoln's throat marks the late die state, where the reverse design was inadvertently impressed into the obverse die during a strike without a planchet, and the reverse also shows late die state characteristics. Die clashes at the throat are a well-known Lincoln Cent diagnostic, occurring where the reverse's highest point contacts the obverse at the neck area. The 1945 cent was struck in shell-case brass — recycled ammunition casings providing approximately 95% copper — the final year of wartime copper-recovery alloy before standard bronze resumed in 1946.

Die Markers

• UVC-1664
• DMR-005
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• Die clash at throat – LDS
• Reverse is LDS

Attribution History

• Discovered by Frank Baumann
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References