1946-S Doubled Die Obverse DDO-003

Description

Third in the obverse doubled die census for the 1946-S Lincoln wheat cent, DDO-003 delivers strong full letter bar spread on LIBERTY and very slight spread on the GO of GOD — a combination where the primary doubling on LIBERTY is dramatically visible while the secondary effect on the motto is subtle by comparison. The "full letter bar spread" description on LIBERTY indicates the doubling manifests as a complete secondary bar or stroke alongside each primary letter, producing clearly separated doubled images that are among the most visually striking diagnostics in the doubled die spectrum. Victor David Brenner's Lincoln portrait has carried the LIBERTY inscription since 1909, positioned along the right side of the obverse where hub displacement frequently produces detectable varieties. VarietyVista assigned identifiers UVC-1738 and DMR-051, documenting three die stages: Stage A at early die state (unconfirmed), Stage B where both obverse and reverse surfaces have reached mid die state, and Stage C at late die state (unconfirmed). The MDS confirmation for Stage B provides a documented die wear checkpoint. The additional comment identifies the mintmark as MMS-004 (trumpet tail), indicating the S mintmark exhibits a characteristic flared or trumpet-shaped lower terminus — a specific mintmark punch style that provides an independent diagnostic for confirming the correct die pair. San Francisco struck approximately 198.1 million cents in 1946, and the strong spread classification on LIBERTY makes DDO-003 one of the more visually dramatic doubled die varieties available for this date. Collectors should examine LIBERTY under 10x magnification, where the full letter bar spread should produce clearly visible secondary letter images alongside the primary, then verify the trumpet tail S mintmark on the reverse as die pair confirmation.

Die Markers

• UVC-1738
• DMR-051
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• Obverse and Reverse are MDS
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by Ken Chylinski
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References