1968-D Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-006

Description

Sixth entry in the 1968 Denver Kennedy Half Dollar DDR catalog, WDDR-006 documents hub misalignment on another of the numerous reverse dies manufactured for Denver's massive 246,951,930 half dollar output that year. Cross-referenced as Wexler Variety ID 1968-D 50¢ WDDR-006, this variety was attributed by the Wexler Team as part of their comprehensive silver-clad Kennedy Half Dollar documentation project. The 1968-D date represents a convergence of collector interest factors: it was the first year Denver-minted Kennedy Half Dollars carried a visible mintmark (1965-1967 coins bore none), the silver-clad composition made each coin worth more than face value in silver content, and the Kennedy assassination's proximity in cultural memory maintained strong collecting demand. Six DDR varieties for a single date-mint combination reflects the scale of die manufacture: Denver likely consumed several hundred reverse dies to produce nearly 247 million coins, and each die was manufactured through multiple hubbing impressions that created independent opportunities for alignment errors. The heraldic eagle reverse design, unchanged since its 1964 introduction, features the presidential seal with its detailed eagle, shield, arrows, olive branch, and motto ribbon — a design dense enough that six separate doubled die varieties can each be distinguished by their specific spread direction, magnitude, and affected design elements, ensuring that each WDDR number represents a genuinely distinct die.

Attribution History

• Wexler Variety ID: 1968-D 50¢ WDDR-006
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References