1948 Doubled Die Obverse DDO-001

Description

Primary doubled die obverse for the 1948 Roosevelt Silver Dime, DDO-001 carries the significance of being the first-cataloged DDO for a date just two years into the Roosevelt Dime series' run. Light spread shows on IN GOD WE TRUST, the designer's initials JS (for John R. Sinnock, positioned side by side), and the date — three distinct diagnostic regions spanning the lower obverse field. Die markers tracked under UVC-0772 and DMR-003 document three stages: Stage A with both obverse and reverse in Early-to-Mid Die State (EMDS), Stage B in Mid-Die State (unconfirmed), and Stage C in Late Die State (also unconfirmed). The EMDS classification for Stage A is noteworthy, indicating the earliest known specimens show die characteristics intermediate between pristine early state and fully broken-in mid-state. Cataloged by VarietyVista, this variety exists on the 90% silver composition that would remain standard for Roosevelt Dimes through 1964. The 1948 Philadelphia Mint produced approximately 74.9 million dimes, rebuilding production volumes after the immediate post-war period. Sinnock's Roosevelt portrait, introduced in 1946 to honor the recently deceased president, was still a new design in 1948, and the die production process for the relatively fresh hub-and-die tooling chain was generating the same types of hub misalignment events that affect all multi-impression die sinking operations. As DDO-001, this variety anchors the doubled die obverse catalog for the 1948 date.

Die Markers

• UVC-0772
• DMR-003
• Stage A:
• Obverse and Reverse are EMDS
• Stage B:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by Michael L. Ellis
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References