1964 Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-089

Description

Eighty-nine doubled die reverses documented for the 1964 Jefferson Nickel speaks to the extraordinary volume of dies consumed in that record-breaking production year, and this Class II distorted hub variety shows a close spread on E PLURIBUS UNUM and UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, with both spreads increasing from left to right across the inscriptions. Class II doubling results from distortion in the hub rather than misalignment between hub and die, producing a characteristic asymmetric spread that grows progressively stronger along the affected text. Attributed by John A. Wexler under Wexler Variety ID 1964 WDDR-089, die markers on the reverse include a die scratch above the right porch and a die scratch below the second O of MONTICELLO. The obverse shows no significant markers. The 1964 Philadelphia Mint Jefferson Nickel was the final year coins were struck without mintmarks at Philadelphia — a policy instituted in 1965 to discourage hoarding during the coin shortage — and the massive production run to meet demand consumed an extraordinary number of die pairs, each carrying a chance of hubbing misalignment. Felix Schlag's Monticello reverse, depicting Thomas Jefferson's Virginia estate, provided ample detail where doubling could manifest.

Attribution History

• Discovered by John A. Wexler
• Wexler Variety ID: 1964 WDDR-089
• Expert attribution by John A. Wexler

External References