1997-D Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-024

Description

Attributed by the Wexler Team as 1997-D 1¢ WDDR-024, this doubled die reverse variety appears on a 1997-D Lincoln Memorial cent struck at the Denver Mint. The Lincoln Memorial cent was produced in copper-plated zinc composition weighing 2.5 grams with a 19 mm diameter and a plain edge. Denver struck approximately 4.6 billion cents in 1997, a massive production run that required thousands of individual dies and correspondingly increased the probability of hub doubling events during die manufacturing. The doubling on WDDR-024 presents as two slanted bars extending from the lower arm to the middle of the knee, positioned to the right of the statue on the seventh column of the Lincoln Memorial reverse. The slanted orientation of the doubling bars suggests the hub displacement had a diagonal component rather than a purely vertical or horizontal shift. Obverse die markers include multiple die chips above the date, a cluster of raised features that provides a quick screening diagnostic. The reverse carries several notable markers: a die chip touching the right-side middle of the T of CENT, a die dent at the rim between the N and T of CENT, and two parallel die scratches extending from the top right of the N of UNITED to the rim. The parallel die scratches are particularly distinctive because their uniform spacing and direction suggest they were created by a single tool contact during die preparation or maintenance. No cross-references to other attribution services have been established for this variety. The 1997-D date produced numerous cataloged doubled die varieties, reflecting both the enormous production volumes and the systematic examination by variety hunters who were actively searching contemporary Denver Mint coinage for die varieties during this period of heightened interest in modern variety collecting.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Steve Young Cross References: None known
• None known; Wexler Variety ID: 1997-D 1¢ WDDR-024
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References