1945 Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-003

Description

Assigned the Wexler designation 1945 25c WDDR-003, this Washington Quarter doubled die reverse was struck at the Philadelphia Mint during the final year of World War II in 90% silver composition. The 1945 quarter belongs to the wartime production era when the Mint operated under immense pressure to maintain circulating coinage supplies while producing military medals and foreign coinage for Allied nations. Doubled die reverses on silver Washington Quarters of this period document hub misalignments during die preparation, where the heraldic eagle reverse — a spread-winged eagle perched on arrows with olive branches below — provided fine feather details and legend elements that could capture evidence of secondary hub impressions. The silver composition gives these wartime quarters a distinctive luster and strike quality that differs from the copper-nickel clad issues that replaced them after the Coinage Act of 1965. As the third cataloged doubled die reverse for the 1945 Philadelphia quarter, WDDR-003 contributes to a small but growing census of die varieties from a year when wartime demands and worn equipment created conditions conducive to hub alignment errors.

Attribution History

• Discovered by John A. Wexler Cross References: None known
• None known; Wexler Variety ID: 1945 25¢ WDDR-003
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References