1935-S Repunched Mintmark RPM-001

Description

Flagship repunched mintmark for the 1935-S Mercury dime, RPM-001 combines an S/S South displacement with the cross-reference designation FS-501, placing it in the Cherrypickers' Guide as the primary variety target for collectors examining this San Francisco issue. The S/S South direction means the initial S punch was placed too high, and the corrective second punch was applied in a lower position, leaving the top portion of the original S visible above the final mintmark. San Francisco struck approximately 15.84 million Mercury dimes in 1935, Adolph A. Weinman's design continuing into its twentieth year of production. The reverse mintmark position to the right of the fasces served as the canvas for this hand-punching error, where the mint worker's initial placement was judged too high and the correction shifted the S downward to the intended position. The FS-501 designation in the Fivaz-Stanton system confirms this variety's inclusion in one of the most widely used variety reference books, ensuring broad awareness among the cherrypicking community. As both RPM-001 and FS-501, this represents the definitive repunched mintmark for 1935-S Mercury dime collectors — the variety most likely to be encountered and most readily verified against published reference images. Collectors examining the S mintmark under 10-15x magnification should look above the final mintmark position for residual evidence of the initial higher placement. The top curves of the first S, extending beyond the upper boundary of the accepted mintmark, provide the primary diagnostic. The southward correction typically produces the clearest separation at the top of the letter, where the two S impressions diverge most dramatically. The FS-501 cross-reference provides published photographs in the Cherrypickers' Guide for definitive side-by-side comparison.

External References