1964-D Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-014

Description

Fourteenth in the Wexler-documented reverse doubled die census for the 1964-D Jefferson nickel, WDDR-014 exhibits very close Class II (Distorted Hub) doubling on OF AMERICA — the portion of the reverse inscription UNITED STATES OF AMERICA that runs along the lower rim beneath Felix Schlag's Monticello depiction. The very close designation represents the most subtle end of the doubling spectrum, where the secondary hub impression is displaced by such a narrow margin that the doubling manifests as barely perceptible thickening of the letter strokes rather than any visible separation. Class II hub distortion produces this type of near-coincident overlap when the deformation in the hub is minimal. Denver struck an extraordinary 1.79 billion nickels in 1964, the largest single-year nickel production in history to that point, driven by the nationwide coin shortage that Congress was simultaneously addressing through silver elimination legislation. This massive output consumed hundreds of working die pairs, making the statistical occurrence of hub doubling events across the die population an expected consequence of the production scale. Obverse die markers include many die scratches to the right of Jefferson's queue (the ribbon-tied ponytail at the back of his head), while the reverse carries a die gouge inside the lower portion of the S in CENTS. These distinctive markers — the clustered obverse scratches and the specific reverse gouge — provide reliable die identification checkpoints more readily visible than the very close doubling itself. Collectors should first confirm the die by locating the scratches near the queue and the gouge in the S of CENTS, then examine OF AMERICA under 20x or greater magnification to resolve the extremely subtle thickening that characterizes this variety.

Die Markers

• Obverse: Many die scratches to right of Jefferson's queue.
• Reverse: Die gouge inside lower portion of S of CENTS.

External References