1945-S Doubled Die Reverse DDR-004

Description

Split serifs appear across UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, QUARTER DOLLAR, and the olive branch stems on this 1945 San Francisco Mint Washington Silver Quarter, with VarietyVista cataloging it as DDR-004 under die markers UVC-0580 and DMR-012. The die stage documentation is unusually detailed: Stage A is unconfirmed in Early Die State, Stage B shows light die gouges through E PLURIBUS and around the wings at Mid Die State with the obverse also at MDS, and Stage C shows both reverse and obverse in Late Die State. A critical additional diagnostic is that the reverse mintmark is MMS-002, the "Trumpet Tail" S variety, and it is also listed separately as RPM-004, meaning this die carries both a doubled die reverse and a repunched mintmark — a combination that makes it particularly desirable for variety collectors. The 1945-S Washington Quarter was struck on 90% silver planchets during the final year of World War II, with San Francisco producing approximately 17.00 million quarters that year. The Washington Quarter series, designed by John Flanagan and first produced in 1932, had been in production for only thirteen years by 1945 — still a relatively young design compared to the preceding Standing Liberty type. The combination of split-serif doubling, Trumpet Tail mintmark, and repunched mintmark status gives DDR-004 multiple layers of variety interest on a single wartime silver coin.

Die Markers

• UVC-0580
• DMR-012
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• Light Die gouges through E PLURIBUS and around the wings – MDS
• Obverse is MDS
• Stage C:
• Reverse and Obverse are LDS

Attribution History

• Discovered by Lee Hiemke
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References