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Repunched Mint Mark

Repunched Mint Mark (RPM)

A Repunched Mint Mark occurs when a mint mark letter (D, S, P, O, CC, etc.) is punched into a working die more than once, with the second (or subsequent) punch landing in a slightly different position than the first. The result is a coin that shows traces of both the original and repositioned mint mark, creating visible doubling, tilting, or displacement of the mint mark.

How Does It Happen?

Until about 1990, the U.S. Mint added mint marks to working dies by hand. A Mint employee would position a small steel punch bearing the appropriate letter over the designated spot on the die and strike it with a mallet. This manual process was inherently imprecise.

Error-Ref lists the mishaps behind RPMs:

  • First punch was off-position: The punch was not placed precisely over the first impression, or the worker tried to correct a first punch that was out of place, leaving traces of the first attempt
  • Bounce: The punch bounced and landed lightly on the rebound
  • Tilted punch: The punch was not held vertically, so it skipped and left a partial secondary impression
  • Incomplete removal: A misplaced mint mark was not fully abraded away before a correctly placed one was punched in

Around 1990, the Mint began adding mint marks to the master die rather than to individual working dies. This change meant that all working dies made from a given master die would have identical mint mark placement, ending the production of new RPM varieties. Sources differ slightly on the cutoff: Error-Ref says the era of RPMs ended in 1989, while others put the change for dimes, quarters and half dollars a year or two later. For proof dies the change is generally dated to 1985.

How to Identify a Repunched Mint Mark

RPMs can range from dramatic to subtle. Here is what to look for:

  • Secondary impression: Look for traces of an earlier mint mark position, usually appearing as a partial letter overlapping the primary mint mark. Error-Ref notes the two impressions almost always overlap, and the secondary is usually thinner and smaller, because the raised letter on the punch tapers toward its tip. The direction of the secondary is given as a compass point (north, southwest and so on). Common presentations:
    • North/South RPM: The secondary mint mark is above or below the primary
    • East/West RPM: The secondary mint mark is to the left or right
    • Rotated RPM: The secondary shares the primary's center but is turned clockwise or counterclockwise
    • Tilted RPM: Only part of the secondary shows, because the punch was held at an angle
    • Over Mint Mark (OMM): A different mint mark letter is punched over another (this is a distinct but related variety)
  • Serifs and curves: The most diagnostic features are the serifs (the small finishing strokes on letters like D and S) and curves of the secondary impression protruding from behind the primary mint mark.
  • Magnification: Most RPMs require 5x-20x magnification to identify. A 10x loupe is the standard field tool.

RPM vs. Machine Doubling

Machine doubling takes several forms, and worn dies produce a look-alike of their own; Mechanical Doubling covers the whole family.

Machine doubling on a mint mark produces a flat, shelf-like displacement without the full-formed appearance of a true RPM. A genuine RPM shows a secondary impression that was punched into the die, with its own depth and serif or curve detail, even when it is partial and thinner than the primary.

Collecting Tips

  • Date range: RPMs are possible only on coins whose mint marks were hand-punched into individual working dies, which for circulating coins means 1989 and earlier (1990 at the latest for some denominations). Most RPMs involve the S or D mint mark (Error-Ref).
  • Jefferson nickels: The Jefferson nickel series (1938-present) has many documented RPM varieties. The mint mark was on the reverse (1938-1964) and then moved to the obverse (1968-present), so RPMs appear in both locations.
  • Use CONECA, Wexler and VarietyVista references: The Wexler die-variety files at doubleddie.com (now run by successors after John Wexler's retirement) and James Wiles's VarietyVista website catalog known RPMs with diagnostic photos. These resources are the basis of accurate attribution.
  • Cherry-picking potential: Because RPMs require magnification to identify, many examples pass through circulation or roll searches unnoticed. Searching through bank rolls of pre-1990 nickels and cents remains a productive way to find RPMs.
  • Check before submitting: Match a suspected RPM against the published files before paying for professional attribution.

Notable Repunched Mint Mark Examples

Each shown with the whole coin and a close-up of the error itself.

1909 (S) Lincoln Wheat Cent - S/S

The coin

1909 (S) Lincoln Wheat Cent - S/S

1909-S Repunched Mintmark RPM-002

What to look for

1909-S Repunched Mintmark RPM-002

The first year of the Lincoln cent, carrying a repunched S on a date collectors were already watching closely. RPM-002 is FS-1502, the variety that belongs with this strike type — the catalog holds several 1909-S repunchings and they are not interchangeable.

1938 (D) Buffalo Nickel - D/D

The coin

1938 (D) Buffalo Nickel - D/D

1938-D Repunched Mintmark RPM-002

What to look for

1938-D Repunched Mintmark RPM-002

The final year of the Buffalo nickel, with nine D/D varieties documented under this one date. It is also the best place on the site to see the distinction this page turns on: the same date carries a 1938-D D/S, where the D was punched over an S rather than over itself.

1943 (D) Lincoln Wheat Cent - D/D

The coin

1943 (D) Lincoln Wheat Cent - D/D

1943-D Repunched Mintmark WRPM-001 / RPM-001

What to look for

1943-D Repunched Mintmark WRPM-001 / RPM-001

A steel cent, so the coin announces its date at a glance, and the mint mark sits in open field below it. Around ninety-five repunched mint marks are catalogued for 1943 across the three mints, which is a fair measure of how routine hand punching still was in wartime.

1942 (D) Jefferson Nickel - D/D

The coin

1942 (D) Jefferson Nickel - D/D

1942-D Repunched Mintmark RPM-001

What to look for

1942-D Repunched Mintmark RPM-001

Doubling of the small D to the right of Monticello, with the secondary D visible to the south on several of the recognised varieties. This is an early-1942 nickel, struck before the wartime alloy moved the mint mark to a much larger punch above the dome, so the mark is in its ordinary position and size. The early Jefferson series is thick with repunchings for exactly that reason: a small mark, punched by hand into every die.

1960 (D) Lincoln Memorial Cent - D/D Small/Large Date

The coin

1960 (D) Lincoln Memorial Cent - D/D Small/Large Date

1960-D Repunched Mintmark WRPM-103

What to look for

1960-D Repunched Mintmark WRPM-103

The variety most often named when collectors talk about repunched mint marks on Lincoln cents. Several exist for this date, some showing dramatic displacement of the D, and they are popular precisely because the date is common enough to stay affordable while the varieties are distinct enough to be worth hunting. It is doubly interesting because 1960 also carries the small-date and large-date hub difference, so one cent can be two varieties at once — which is why the catalog title reads "D/D Small/Large Date".

1964 (D) Kennedy Half Dollar - D/D

The coin

1964 (D) Kennedy Half Dollar - D/D

1964-D Repunched Mintmark RPM-002

What to look for

1964-D Repunched Mintmark RPM-002

The largest mint mark among these examples, which makes it the easiest repunching here to see without magnification — a good first one to attempt. Twenty-two are documented for this single date.

1911 (D) St. Gaudens Double Eagle - D/D

The coin

1911 (D) St. Gaudens Double Eagle - D/D

1911-D Repunched Mint Mark WRPM-001

What to look for

1911-D Repunched Mint Mark WRPM-001

Gold, and the only example here outside the cent-to-half-dollar range. Worth including because repunched mint marks are usually shown on minor coinage, which makes them look like a small-change phenomenon rather than a consequence of how every mint mark was applied.

Explore Repunched Mint Mark Listings

Browse real examples of Repunched Mint Mark errors in the NumisDex catalog.

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