1946 Doubled Die Obverse DDO-001

Description

Benchmark obverse doubled die for the 1946 Philadelphia Jefferson nickel, DDO-001 displays extra thickness on IN GOD WE TRUST, LIBERTY, the star, and the date. Philadelphia's 1946 production of approximately 161.1 million nickels marked the return to full peacetime operations after the wartime silver alloy years, with the standard 75% copper / 25% nickel composition restored. Felix Schlag's obverse portrait — which had appeared in the emergency wartime alloy since mid-1942 — resumed its original metallurgical context. VarietyVista documents this variety as UVC-816 with die marriage DMR-002. Extra thickness on four major design elements reflects a hub doubling where the secondary impression nearly coincided with the first, thickening the raised features uniformly rather than producing visible lateral or rotational spread. The post-war transition year carries historical significance, and DDO-001 provides die variety collectors with a tangible artifact of the 1946 die manufacturing process. Examination should focus on comparing letter stroke widths across the full obverse against confirmed undoubled examples.

Die Markers

• UVC-816; DMR-002

External References