1945-S Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-001

Description

As the first cataloged doubled die reverse for the 1945-S Mercury Dime, WDDR-001 preserves hub doubling on one of the final issues in Adolph Weinman's beloved Winged Liberty Head design, which would be replaced the following year by John R. Sinnock's Roosevelt portrait. The 1945-S date represents the last year of Mercury Dime production, and San Francisco struck approximately 41.9 million examples that year — the wartime economy still driving robust coinage demand even as the conflict drew toward its conclusion. Doubled die reverses on Mercury Dimes form during the hubbing process when the working hub and working die are not perfectly aligned between successive impressions, transferring doubled design elements to the die's fasces and inscription details. Weinman's reverse, featuring a fasces bound with an olive branch, carries intricate detail lines in the axe head and branch elements that are particularly sensitive to revealing even minor hub displacement. Cataloged by the Wexler Team under Wexler Variety ID: 1945-S 10¢ WDDR-001, this variety remains a target for specialists who focus on the Mercury Dime series, where doubled dies are less frequently encountered than in the Lincoln Cent or Jefferson Nickel families.

Attribution History

• s:; Wexler Variety ID: 1945-S 10¢ WDDR-001
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References