1943 Doubled Die Obverse DDO-001

Description

The 1943 DDO-001 Lincoln Wheat cent, cross-referenced as FS-101 (18.97) in the Fivaz-Stanton Cherrypickers' Guide and cataloged by VarietyVista with UVC-1546 and DMR-002, is one of the most significant doubled die obverse varieties in the Lincoln cent series. Struck during World War II at the Philadelphia Mint on zinc-coated steel planchets weighing 2.70 grams with a 19 mm diameter, the 1943 steel cent is already one of the most recognizable American coins, and the DDO-001 variety adds substantial collector interest. The doubling manifests as extreme extra thickness on LIBERTY, the date, and WE TRUST, with the word LIBERTY showing particularly dramatic displacement that is visible under low magnification. Three die stages have been documented: Stage A with both obverse and reverse at early die state, Stage B at mid die state (unconfirmed), and Stage C at late die state showing a light die crack on the forehead, a die crack across the upper shoulder, two die cracks across the lower lapel, and a die crack from the E of CENT running north-northwest to the rim through the O of ONE and the L of PLURIBUS. The progression from early die state through the extensively cracked late die state documents the physical deterioration of this obverse die during its production life, with the harder steel planchets likely accelerating die failure compared to the softer bronze composition used in other years. Philadelphia produced 684,628,670 steel cents in 1943, providing a large population from which examples of this variety can potentially be found. The FS-101 designation and its listing in multiple reference works make DDO-001 one of the most widely known and actively sought Lincoln cent doubled dies.

Die Markers

• UVC-1546
• DMR-002
• Stage A:
• Obverse and Reverse are EDS
• Stage B:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• Light die crack on forehead – LDS
• Die crack across upper shoulder
• Two die cracks across lower lapel
• Die crack from E of CENT North-Northwest to rim through O of ONE
• and L of PLURIBUS – LDS

Attribution History

• Discovered by John A. Wexler
• FS-101
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References