1999 Doubled Die Reverse DDR-004

Description

Fourth in the reverse doubled die census for the 1999 Lincoln Memorial cent, DDR-004 exhibits medium westward spread manifesting as an extra column number 7 in the Lincoln Memorial facade — specifically visible from the seated figure's face down to the knee level. Victor David Brenner's obverse portrait pairs with Frank Gasparro's Lincoln Memorial reverse, where the columned facade of the memorial provides an architectural grid that makes column-doubling varieties among the most visually distinctive in the entire Lincoln cent DDR catalog. VarietyVista documented this die under UVC-2962 and DMR-006, tracking three die stages: Stage A at early die state (unconfirmed), Stage B where both obverse and reverse surfaces show mid die state characteristics, and Stage C at late die state (unconfirmed). The MDS confirmation for Stage B indicates specimens with moderate die wear have been examined and confirmed. Philadelphia struck approximately 5.24 billion cents in 1999, a massive output that consumed enormous numbers of working dies. The RDV-007 (Reverse Design Variant) notation identifies the specific reverse hub variant employed, providing an additional classification layer beyond the DDR attribution itself. Medium westward spread producing an extra column from face to knee covers the upper-to-middle portion of the phantom seventh column, distinguishing DDR-004 from other 1999 DDRs that may show the extra column over different vertical spans — such as DDR-003's knee-to-foot range or DDR-007's elbow-to-knee section. This systematic variation in the visible portion of the ghost column reflects slight differences in hub alignment across independent doubling events on separate dies.

Die Markers

• UVC-2962
• DMR-006
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• Reverse and Obverse are MDS
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by James Wiles
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References