1956 Doubled Die Reverse DDR-008

Description

Extra thickness on E PLURIBUS UNUM, both wheat ears, the stems, and OF AMERICA defines the doubling scope of DDR-008 for the 1956 Lincoln wheat cent, one of the more broadly affected DDR varieties in the late wheat cent series. VarietyVista's documentation under UVC-3026 (Stage A and B) and UVC-3474 (Stage C, after an obverse die change) with die markers references DMR-018 and DMR-019 reveals a complex die history. Stage A at early die state is unconfirmed, but Stage B shows a die chip developing on the T of CENT at mid-die-state, and the obverse at this point is listed as DDO-001 at late die state. A die change then occurs: Stage C introduces a new obverse die paired with the same reverse, now showing a die break on the T of CENT at late-to-mid die state (LMDS) and a small die chip in the right wheat grains, with the new obverse in early-to-mid die state. This die re-pairing documentation -- where the Mint retired a worn obverse die and substituted a fresh one while keeping the DDR reverse in service -- captures a routine Mint operation that is rarely visible in the numismatic record. The companion obverse die at Stage B carries its own DDO-001 attribution, creating a die pair where both sides are independently recognized varieties. Philadelphia struck 420,745,000 wheat cents in 1956, the penultimate year of the Wheat Ears reverse before its 1958 conclusion, making DDR-008 one of the final doubled die reverses in the iconic design's forty-nine-year production run.

Die Markers

• UVC-3026
• DMR-018
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• Die chip on T of CENT – MDS
• Obverse is LISTED as DDO-001 – LDS
• UVC-3474
• DMR-019
• Stage C:
• Die break on T of CENT – LMDS
• Small die chip in Right wheat grains
• Obverse die changed – EMDS

Attribution History

• Discovered by Timothy Wissert, James Wiles
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References