1963 Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-003

Description

Cataloged by the Wexler Team as WDDR-003 on the 1963 Washington Silver Quarter, this doubled die reverse displays a spread towards the center on QUARTER DOLLAR and the lower branch ends of the heraldic eagle's olive branch and arrows. The spread-towards-center classification indicates the secondary hub impression was slightly contracted relative to the primary, pulling the reverse inscriptions and botanical details inward from their primary positions. Obverse die markers include a die scratch running from the upper B to the upper E in LIBERTY, with numerous additional die scratches throughout the obverse. Reverse markers include a die scratch running east-southeast from the second A in AMERICA, a die scratch running south-southwest from the leaf north of the Q in QUARTER, and a die crack running down the eagle's right wing — the wing crack suggesting this die was approaching the end of its service life when the most diagnostic specimens were struck. Cross-referenced as Wexler Variety ID 1963 25-cent WDDR-003 with no other known attributions, this variety appears on the final year of 90% silver Washington Quarter production before the Coinage Act of 1965 mandated the transition to clad composition. The 1963 quarter was struck in 90% silver and 10% copper, weighing 6.25 grams with a diameter of 24.26 mm, at the Philadelphia Mint. John Flanagan's heraldic eagle reverse, with its precisely rendered olive branch and arrows beneath the outstretched wings, provides botanical details where even subtle contraction-type doubling becomes visible as slight thickening on the branch terminals and leaf tips.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Tony Russo Cross References: None known
• None known; Wexler Variety ID: 1963 25¢ WDDR-003
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References