1942-D Doubled Die Obverse DDO-002

Description

Light spread on LIBERTY and the date identifies this second documented doubled die obverse for the 1942-D Lincoln Wheat Cent, struck at the Denver Mint during the first full year of American involvement in World War II. Cataloged by VarietyVista with die marker codes UVC-1537 and DMR-016, the die stage progression spans three documented states: Stage A (Early Die State, unconfirmed), Stage B with both obverse and reverse in Mid Die State, and Stage C with both in Late Die State. The consistent pairing of obverse and reverse die states across B and C suggests this die marriage remained together throughout the die's production life. The 1942-D cent was struck during a pivotal period in Mint history — later in 1943, the copper composition would be temporarily replaced by zinc-coated steel to conserve copper for the war effort, making the 1942 date the last year of standard bronze composition before the wartime interruption. Denver struck over 206 million cents in 1942, and the demands of wartime production meant dies were worked intensively. The "light" qualifier on the spread indicates the doubling requires careful examination under magnification, particularly on LIBERTY and the date digits where the secondary image appears as subtle extra thickness rather than dramatic separation.

Die Markers

• UVC-1537
• DMR-016
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• Obverse and Reverse are MDS
• Stage C:
• Obverse and Reverse are LDS

Attribution History

• Discovered by Lee Rogers
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References