1963 Doubled Die Obverse WDDO-021

Description

Originally listed as WDDO-030 before being renumbered to replace the original WDDO-021 listing that was delisted for being too minor, this Class II distorted hub doubled die obverse for the 1963 Philadelphia Mint Jefferson Nickel shows doubling on IN GOD WE TRUST. The renumbering history reveals the dynamic nature of die variety cataloging — varieties are discovered, listed, evaluated, and occasionally consolidated or replaced as research progresses. Class II doubling stems from distortion within the hub rather than physical misalignment, producing spread that varies in intensity across the design. A die scratch on the rim above IN on the obverse and die dots below MO of MONTICELLO on the reverse serve as attribution markers. The 1963 Jefferson Nickel was produced in the last year before the U.S. Mint suspended proof set production (1965-1967) due to the nationwide coin shortage. Philadelphia's 1963 nickel output exceeded 178 million pieces for business strikes alone. The IN GOD WE TRUST motto, positioned along the left obverse field of the Schlag portrait, provides a compact cluster of small letters that can reveal hub distortion through relative letter spacing anomalies. Twenty-one-plus documented DDO varieties for 1963 reflects the exhaustive examination this pre-shortage date has received from Jefferson Nickel variety specialists.

Die Markers

• Obverse: Die scratch on rim above IN.
• Reverse: Die dots below MO of MONTICELLO.

External References