1950-D Doubled Die Reverse DDR-002

Description

Second in the reverse doubled die census for the 1950-D Franklin half dollar, DDR-002 presents medium spread across multiple reverse design elements: E PLURIBUS UNUM, the left eagle wings, and the tail feathers — three distinct diagnostic zones that collectively confirm a substantial hub displacement event on John R. Sinnock's reverse featuring the Liberty Bell and the small eagle mandated by law. Denver struck approximately 8.03 million Franklin halves in 1950, a date that already commands collector attention because the Philadelphia issue of only 7.74 million is the lowest-mintage entry in the series. VarietyVista cataloged this variety under UVC-0037 and DMR-003, documenting three die stages: Stage A at early die state (unconfirmed), Stage B where both reverse and obverse surfaces exhibit mid die state characteristics, and Stage C at late die state (unconfirmed). The MDS confirmation for Stage B establishes that moderately worn specimens have been verified. An important additional notation identifies this die as utilizing RDV-001b paired with RDV-001a — reverse design variants that indicate the specific hub versions used in preparing this working die, providing collectors with a supplementary classification checkpoint beyond the doubled die attribution itself. Medium spread on the eagle wing feathers is particularly diagnostic because the fine parallel barbs of each feather provide natural reference lines that amplify visible displacement, while the tail feathers at the eagle's lower body and the arcing letters of E PLURIBUS UNUM along the upper periphery offer independent confirmation zones. Collectors should systematically examine all three affected areas under 10-15x magnification, as consistent spread direction across the motto, wings, and tail feathers confirms a single hub doubling event rather than localized die deterioration.

Die Markers

• UVC-0037
• DMR-003
• Stage A:
• EDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage B:
• Reverse and Obverse are MDS
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by Unknown
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References