1956-D Doubled Die Obverse WDDO-014

Description

By 1956, Victor David Brenner's portrait of Abraham Lincoln had graced the obverse of the one-cent piece for forty-seven consecutive years — the longest-running presidential portrait in American coinage history at that time. Each generation of dies faithfully reproduced Brenner's original sculpt, yet the mechanical process of hub-to-die transfer occasionally introduced subtle variations. WDDO-014 from the 1956-D issue documents the fourteenth such doubled die obverse, where a slight positional shift during die sinking created overlapping design elements on a Denver Mint working die. Obverse inscriptions provide the primary diagnostic zones for doubled die identification: the letters of LIBERTY and IN GOD WE TRUST, along with the date numerals, reveal secondary impressions when examined under appropriate magnification. The 1956-D's status as a common date in circulated grades makes it readily available for variety searching, an accessibility that has contributed to the extensive catalog of known varieties. Cataloged under Wexler Variety ID 1956-D 1¢ WDDO-014.

Attribution History

• Wexler Variety ID: 1956-D 1¢ WDDO-014
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References