1946-D Doubled Die Obverse DDO-020

Description

Twentieth in the obverse doubled die census for the 1946-D Roosevelt dime, DDO-020 shows light spread on the date, on John R. Sinnock's designer initials JS (running top to bottom), and on the word TRUST. The Roosevelt dime debuted in 1946 as a tribute to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, whose association with the March of Dimes polio campaign made the ten-cent denomination a fitting memorial — and Denver's first-year production of approximately 61.0 million pieces created substantial die requirements. VarietyVista assigned identifiers UVC-772 and DMR-059, documenting three die stages: Stage A at early die state (unconfirmed), Stage B at mid die state (unconfirmed), and Stage C where both obverse and reverse surfaces are confirmed at late die state. The LDS confirmation for Stage C indicates that specimens showing advanced die wear have been verified, providing collectors with a documented endpoint for this die's service life. The obverse carries the ODV-001 designation, identifying the specific obverse design variant employed. Light spread on the date, designer's initials, and TRUST represents a broad distribution of affected elements that spans from the lower right (date and initials) to the upper right (TRUST) of the obverse — a pattern consistent with a rotational or pivoted hub misalignment that produced varying degrees of displacement across different regions of the die. Sinnock's initials JS, positioned at the base of Roosevelt's neck truncation, provide particularly fine letterforms where even light doubling can be resolved under 15-20x magnification. Collectors should examine the initials first as the most accessible diagnostic, then confirm by checking the date numerals and TRUST inscription for consistent directional displacement.

Die Markers

• UVC-772
• DMR-059
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• Obverse and Reverse are LDS

Attribution History

• Discovered by Brian Ribar
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References