1949-S Repunched Mintmark RPM-002

Description

Registered in the VarietyVista catalog under UVC-372 and DMR-003, this 1949-S Jefferson Nickel RPM-002 is a repunched mintmark variety where the San Francisco Mint S was applied to the working die more than once, with the initial impression remaining visible as a secondary S partially overlapping the final corrective placement. Three documented die stages track this die pair through its production life: Stage A in early die state (EDS, unconfirmed), Stage B in mid-die-state (MDS, unconfirmed), and Stage C in late die state (LDS, unconfirmed). Repunched mintmarks on Jefferson Nickels from the 1940s are a direct artifact of the manual mintmark application process, where a small steel punch bearing the S letter was hand-positioned against the reverse working die and struck with a mallet to transfer the mintmark impression. The inherent imprecision of this manual method meant that the first punch attempt frequently landed slightly off the intended position, requiring the engraver to adjust and strike again — with the partial remnant of the misplaced first impression creating the diagnostic RPM feature visible on all coins subsequently struck from that die. The Jefferson Nickel was designed by Felix Schlag, with his portrait of Thomas Jefferson on the obverse and a rendering of Monticello on the reverse. Struck at the San Francisco Mint in 1949, the coin was produced in standard copper-nickel composition (75% copper, 25% nickel) weighing 5.00 grams with a diameter of 21.21 mm. The 1949-S had a mintage of approximately 9.3 million pieces, a relatively modest figure that kept the surviving population manageable for variety collectors seeking this RPM. Examination under 10x magnification focused on the mintmark area is recommended to identify the direction and magnitude of the repunching relative to the final S position.

Die Markers

• UVC-372
• DMR-003
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

External References