1971-D Repunched Mintmark RPM-002

Description

The second repunched mintmark variety cataloged for the 1971-D Kennedy Half Dollar, RPM-002 exhibits a D/D South displacement where the initial mintmark impression appears below the final, correctly positioned D. Hand-punching mintmarks onto working dies required precision that was difficult to achieve consistently, and a southward first impression followed by a corrective northward adjustment produced the overlapping images that define this variety. This RPM is tracked as ODV-002 in the obverse die variety system. As the inaugural year of the fully clad Kennedy Half Dollar — the 40% silver composition having ended with the 1970-D issue — the 1971-D occupies a pivotal position in the series. Collectors who focus on the Kennedy Half Dollar often note that the early clad years produced some of the most interesting mintmark varieties because the hand-punch method was still in use and die production techniques had not yet been fully standardized for the new composition. The directional notation in RPM classification provides researchers with a systematic way to distinguish among multiple repunched mintmark varieties sharing the same date and mint, and the southward shift documented in RPM-002 represents one of the more commonly encountered displacement directions across the broader Kennedy RPM census.

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