1964 Doubled Die Obverse WDDO-014

Description

Struck from proof dies at the Philadelphia Mint, the 1964 WDDO-014 is a doubled die obverse variety found among the 3,950,762 proof Lincoln cents produced that year. Proof dies differ fundamentally from business strike dies in their preparation and service life: they are specially polished to a mirror finish, chrome-plated for durability, and used to strike coins on polished planchets at higher-than-normal pressure, producing the deep mirror fields and frosted design elements that characterize proof coinage. Because proof dies have a service life of only about 3,000 strikes — far fewer than the hundreds of thousands expected of a business strike die — the total number of coins carrying any given proof doubled die is inherently limited. Hub doubling on a proof die occurs during the same manufacturing process as on business strike dies: the hub is impressed into the working die more than once with a slight shift, embedding a doubled image in the die steel. However, the higher striking pressure and mirror-like fields of proof coins can make the doubling either more or less visible depending on its location, as the reflective surfaces sometimes enhance subtle doubling that would be invisible on a satiny business strike. Cross-referenced as Wexler Variety ID: 1964 1¢ Pr WDDO-014 and attributed by the Wexler Team, this variety is one of the scarcer 1964 doubled dies by virtue of its proof strike type. Struck on a 3.11-gram, 19mm bronze planchet of 95% copper and 5% tin-zinc.

Attribution History

• Wexler Variety ID: 1964 1¢ Pr WDDO-014
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References