1956 Doubled Die Obverse DDO-004

Description

Lincoln's eyelid — that precisely sculpted curve in Victor David Brenner's 1909 portrait — serves as one of the most sensitive indicators of hub doubling on the wheat cent series, and DDO-004 for the 1956 issue demonstrates exactly why: medium southward spread creates a distinctly doubled eyelid visible under moderate magnification. VarietyVista cataloged this die under UVC-1869 and DMR-006, tracking an especially informative three-stage progression: Stage A at early die state (unconfirmed), Stage B where a die clash has developed at the throat and front of vest on the obverse while the reverse reaches mid die state, and Stage C at late die state (unconfirmed). The Stage B notation is particularly valuable because it records the development of a die clash — an event where the obverse and reverse dies struck each other without an intervening planchet, transferring incuse reverse design elements onto the obverse die surface at the throat and vest area. This clashed state provides an additional diagnostic for specimens at the Stage B die state, supplementing the doubled eyelid with the clash impressions. A further comment notes "Chipped 6 hub," indicating the numeral 6 in the date 1956 was produced by a hub with a chip defect — a tiny area of damage on the hub that transfers as an anomaly in the numeral on every die produced from that hub. Philadelphia struck approximately 420.7 million cents in 1956, the penultimate full year of wheat reverse production before 1957 (the last year before the 1958 final issue). The southward spread on the eyelid means the secondary impression falls below the primary eyelid line, creating a parallel curve beneath Lincoln's eye that is distinct from normal portrait detail. Collectors should first check the numeral 6 for the hub chip anomaly, then examine the eyelid area under 10-15x magnification for the displaced secondary curve.

Die Markers

• UVC-1869
• DMR-006
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• Die clash at throat and front of vest – MDS
• Reverse is MDS
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by Larry Patterson
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References