1941-S Repunched Mintmark RPM-009

Description

Cataloged by VarietyVista with die markers UVC-107 and DMR-011, this 1941-S Lincoln Wheat Cent RPM-009 is a repunched mintmark variety where the S mintmark was applied more than once to the reverse working die at the San Francisco Mint, with the earlier impression remaining partially visible alongside the final corrected position. Three documented die stages capture this die's operational arc: Stage A is early die state (EDS, unconfirmed); Stage B records both the obverse and reverse at mid-die-state (MDS); and Stage C documents both at late die state (LDS). The symmetric deterioration pattern — with both dies progressing through the same stages simultaneously — suggests the obverse and reverse dies were installed as a pair and remained together through their full service life, rather than being separated and repaired at different rates as sometimes occurred in production. The 1941-S Lincoln Wheat Cent was struck at the San Francisco Mint in the standard bronze composition of 95% copper and 5% tin and zinc, weighing 3.11 grams with a 19.05 mm diameter. Production in 1941 preceded American entry into World War II by months, and the San Francisco Mint's cent output was substantial in this final full peacetime year before wartime production demands and material shortages would alter coinage composition (zinc-coated steel in 1943) and production priorities. Victor David Brenner designed the obverse portrait of Abraham Lincoln that has been in continuous use since 1909, while the wheat ears reverse served from 1909 through 1958. Repunched mintmark varieties from the early 1940s are actively collected because they document the last years of fully manual mintmark application before wartime disruptions changed production practices at the branch mints. The MDS/LDS stage observations provide collectors with expectations for the condition of die surfaces on specimens from different points in the production run.

Die Markers

• UVC-107
• DMR-011
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• Obverse and Reverse are MDS
• Stage C:
• Obverse and Reverse are LDS

External References