1968-S Doubled Die Obverse DDO-012

Description

Documented by VarietyVista with die markers UVC-1334 and DMR-018, DDO-012 on the 1968-S Jefferson Nickel presents a light spread on five obverse elements: IN GOD WE TRUST, LIBERTY, the five-pointed star, the date, and Felix Schlag's designer initials FS. Three die stages have been recorded: Stage A shows the obverse in early die state with a horizontal die scratch running through the right tall window on the reverse (also in early die state), Stage B in mid die state remains unconfirmed, and Stage C in late die state is unconfirmed. The horizontal die scratch through the right tall window at Stage A serves as the primary reverse die identification marker, while the early die state classification at this stage indicates specimens from the initial production run of this die should be well struck with sharp design detail. The 1968-S Jefferson Nickel was struck at the San Francisco Mint in copper-nickel composition — 75% copper and 25% nickel — weighing 5.0 grams with a diameter of 21.21 mm. DDO-012 is the immediate catalog neighbor to DDO-011, both documenting light spread across the same five obverse elements on 1968-S nickels — a proximity suggesting these two dies may have been produced during the same hubbing session where a systematic alignment issue affected multiple dies. The light spread classification indicates doubling requiring 8-10x magnification for confident identification, with the designer initials FS on the bust truncation typically offering the best diagnostic checkpoint due to their fine line weight.

Die Markers

• UVC-1334
• DMR-018
• Stage A:
• Obverse is EDS
• Horizontal die scratch through the Right tall window – EDS
• Stage B:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by Timothy Wissert
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References