1946 Doubled Die Obverse DDO-013

Description

Medium spread on both the date and John R. Sinnock's designer initials JS, running top to bottom, defines DDO-013 for the inaugural 1946 Roosevelt dime. VarietyVista assigned identifiers UVC-015 and DMR-015, documenting three die stages: Stage A where both obverse and reverse surfaces exhibit confirmed early die state characteristics, Stage B at mid die state (unconfirmed), and Stage C where both obverse and reverse surfaces have reached confirmed late die state. The EDS and LDS confirmations for Stages A and C bracket the documented die life, establishing specimens exist at both fresh and worn extremes. Philadelphia struck approximately 255.3 million Roosevelt dimes in 1946, the debut year for Sinnock's design honoring President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The obverse carries the ODV-001 designation, identifying this die as the first documented obverse design variant for the date. Medium spread on the date and designer's initials — two closely positioned elements at the lower right of the obverse near the bust truncation — concentrates the doubling diagnostics in a compact area that can be examined without scanning the entire coin surface. The "top to bottom" notation for the initials indicates the spread direction runs vertically through the JS monogram, displacing the secondary impression downward relative to the primary. Sinnock's initials are particularly fine letterforms positioned at the very base of Roosevelt's neck, where the incuse cavity in the die is shallow and the letter detail is delicate enough to reveal moderate hub displacement clearly. As the thirteenth documented obverse doubled die for 1946, DDO-013 reflects the extensive variety research applied to the Roosevelt dime's inaugural production year. Collectors should examine the date numerals and the JS initials at the bust truncation under 12-18x magnification, looking for consistent downward displacement of secondary impressions.

Die Markers

• UVC-015
• DMR-015
• Stage A:
• Obverse and Reverse are EDS
• Stage B:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• Obverse and Reverse are LDS

Attribution History

• Discovered by Delma K. Romines
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References