1973-S Doubled Die Obverse DDO-003

Description

Light spread increasing from left to right on IN GOD WE TRUST, the date, and the Y of LIBERTY characterizes this 1973-S Proof Kennedy Half Dollar DDO-003, where the directional gradient reveals pivot-based hub displacement that concentrated greater separation on rightward elements. The partial LIBERTY involvement — limited to just the Y — further confirms the leftward pivot geometry, with only the final letter receiving enough angular shift to produce detectable spread. Die markers UVC-541 and DMR-007 anchor the VarietyVista attribution. Three die stages are documented: Stage A at Early Die State preserves the light spread at its crispest, while Stages B and C at Mid and Late Die State remain unconfirmed. The 1973-S proof Kennedy Half Dollar was struck in copper-nickel clad composition at San Francisco for collector proof sets, and the controlled proof production process meant each die pair saw limited use before replacement. Three cataloged doubled die obverses for the 1973-S proof date indicates a smaller variety population than adjacent years, making each confirmed variety a meaningful addition to the Kennedy Half proof DDO census.

Die Markers

• UVC-541
• DMR-007
• Stage A:
• Obverse and Reverse are EDS
• Stage B:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by Larry Nienaber
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References