1913 Doubled Die Obverse WDDO-002

Description

Close Class IV offset hub doubling appears to the north on the eyelid, nostril, ribbon, and braid below the ribbon on this 1913 Buffalo Nickel — the inaugural year of James Earle Fraser's iconic design that replaced Charles Barber's Liberty Head Nickel. Class IV doubling results from a lateral offset of the hub during hubbing without rotation, producing a directional shift rather than the rotational spread of Class I varieties. The northward displacement is visible on the fine details of the Native American portrait, where the eyelid, nostril, and the ribbon with its associated braid below show distinct secondary images displaced upward. Attributed by the Wexler Team under Wexler Variety ID 1913 5c WDDO-002 with photos credited to Kevin Flynn, the obverse die marker is a diagonal die scratch in the Indian's hair above the ribbon. The reverse — a Type II reverse (flat ground variant) — shows a short diagonal die crack above the bison's horn and a series of gouges below UN of UNITED. The 1913 Buffalo Nickel was struck in two reverse types: Type I with the bison standing on a raised mound, and Type II with the flat ground, and this variety's Type II reverse places it in the later production of the inaugural year. Fraser's design was celebrated for its distinctly American imagery but presented significant striking challenges that plagued the series throughout its twenty-five-year production run.

Attribution History

• Discovered by William Van Note Cross References: None known Comments: The photos of this variety were taken by Kevin Flynn
• None known Comments: The photos of this variety were taken by Kevin Flynn; Wexler Variety ID: 1913 5¢ WDDO-002
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References