1970-S Doubled Die Obverse WDDO-032

Description

Among the higher-numbered entries in the Wexler doubled die obverse catalog for the 1970-S Lincoln Memorial cent, WDDO-032 documents a Small Date regular strike die that received misaligned secondary hubbing during preparation at the San Francisco Mint. Doubled die obverses originate when a master hub impresses its design into a working die with any shift, rotation, or tilt between successive impressions, permanently embedding overlapping design elements into the die steel. The Small Date designation places this die within one of two hub families used for 1970-S cent production: the Small Date hub features a date where the tops of the digits align more uniformly and the 7 sits lower relative to the other numerals, while the Large Date hub shows a taller 7 extending noticeably above its neighbors. No cross-references to CONECA, Coppercoins, or other attribution systems have been established, and no confirmed cross-references are known. The absence of external cross-listings is not uncommon for varieties deep in the WDDO sequence, where doubling may be subtle enough to have escaped independent cataloging by other services. For collectors examining 1970-S Small Date cents, identifying WDDO-032 requires careful comparison against Wexler's published die marker photographs, paying attention to both the doubling characteristics and the unique surface features — die scratches, gouges, and polish lines — that fingerprint this specific working die.

Attribution History

• Discovered by John Conway Cross References: None known
• None known; Wexler Variety ID: 1970-S 1¢ WDDO-032
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References