1964-D Doubled Die Obverse WDDO-013

Description

Continuing through the Wexler catalog of doubled die obverse varieties for the 1964-D Lincoln Memorial Cent, WDDO-013 represents the thirteenth distinct obverse die identified as carrying a hubbing-induced design displacement from the Denver Mint's 1964 production. The die manufacturing process at the Denver Mint during this period followed the same multi-impression hubbing protocol used at Philadelphia: a hardened working hub bearing the obverse design was repeatedly pressed into a heated die blank under hydraulic force, with each impression deepening the incuse design toward its final specification. Hub displacement between any two impressions created a secondary image that was permanently embedded in the die, surviving the hardening process and entering production alongside the primary design. The extraordinary scale of 1964-D cent production — 3,799,071,500 coins, the highest single-mint Lincoln cent output in history at that time — required an unprecedented number of working dies, each individually hubbed and therefore individually susceptible to alignment anomalies. WDDO-013 documents one such anomaly and the coins it produced during the die's service life. For collectors, the 1964-D cent offers a combination of variety interest and accessibility: the massive mintage ensures that raw examples are inexpensive and widely available, making systematic variety searching a practical pursuit. The date also marks the end of an era, as Congress removed mint marks from all coins beginning in 1965 in response to the coin shortage. Identification of this variety requires magnification and comparison with Wexler reference photographs. Struck on a 95% copper and 5% tin-zinc planchet weighing 3.11 grams.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Wexler Team

External References