1964 Doubled Die Obverse WDDO-004

Description

Gilroy Roberts designed the Kennedy Half Dollar obverse under intense time pressure following the November 1963 assassination. The repeated hubbing required to produce proof-quality working dies from a master hub creates conditions where doubled die events occur when die and hub are not perfectly realigned between successive impressions. WDDO-004 is one of the first-year doubled die obverse varieties attributed in the Wexler Doubled Die Files under 1964 50¢ WDDO-004. The 1964 proof Kennedy was struck in 90% silver and issued in annual proof sets sold to collectors by the Philadelphia Mint. The coin's initial public reception was extraordinary: silver Kennedy Halves were hoarded on release, never reaching meaningful circulation, and nearly all 1964 examples survive in uncirculated or proof condition. For variety collectors, this means a robust supply of unattributed proof candidates to examine, though the number of documented DDO varieties for this date in the Wexler catalog requires systematic attribution work to distinguish each entry.

Attribution History

• Wexler Variety ID: 1964 50¢ WDDO-004
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References