1970-S Repunched Mintmark RPM-008

Description

Completing the documented VarietyVista repunched mintmark catalog for the 1970-S Lincoln Memorial cent, RPM-008 records another Proof Large Date variety with a tilted mintmark displacement — S/S Tilted. Assigned to obverse die variety ODV-025 with die markers UVC-3473 and DMR-043, this variety's UVC number in the 3400s represents the latest cataloging date among all 1970-S RPM entries, indicating it was documented well after the initial attribution period. Three die stages have been cataloged, though a notable anomaly exists in the published stage listing: two entries are designated "Stage A," where the sequence should read A, B, C. This typographical error in the source documentation does not affect the variety's validity but does require collectors consulting the original attribution to mentally correct the stage progression. Stage A at Early Die State captures the tilted proof mintmark at maximum clarity. The subsequent stages (labeled as a second Stage A and Stage B in the source, but functionally representing Mid and Late Die States) track the proof die's progressive deterioration. RPM-008's proof status makes it the fourth proof RPM documented for the 1970-S date — joining RPM-004 (north), RPM-005 (east), and RPM-006 (tilted) — demonstrating that San Francisco produced a substantial number of proof dies carrying repunched mintmarks. The hand-punching process that created these varieties was standard Mint practice through 1989, applied identically to proof and business-strike dies regardless of the heightened quality standards associated with proof coinage. That four of eight cataloged 1970-S RPMs appear on proof dies reflects both the volume of proof die preparation and the attentiveness of collectors who have systematically examined proof populations for mintmark varieties.

Die Markers

• UVC-3473
• DMR-043
• Stage A:
• Obverse are Reverse are EDS
• Stage A:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by Robert Umbarger
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References