1971-S Doubled Die Obverse DDO-005

Description

Fifth in the obverse doubled die census for the 1971-S Kennedy half dollar proof, DDO-005 exhibits strong spread across all lettering, the date, and the upper hair on Gilroy Roberts's Kennedy portrait — a comprehensive doubling that affects virtually every major obverse design element. VarietyVista assigned die identifiers UVC-185 and DMR-007, with three documented die stages: Stage A where both obverse and reverse surfaces show early die state characteristics, Stage B at mid die state (unconfirmed), and Stage C at late die state (unconfirmed). The comments confirm this as a proof issue, and the obverse carries the additional designation ODV-003 (Obverse Design Variant 003), indicating a specific hub variant within the 1971-S proof die preparation sequence. San Francisco began striking proof Kennedy half dollars in 1968 after the mintmark suspension ended, and the 1971-S proof half has a mintage of approximately 3.22 million pieces — all struck from specially polished dies on burnished planchets with multiple strikes to bring up full design detail. The strong spread designation elevates DDO-005 above varieties with light or medium doubling, meaning the displacement between primary and secondary hub impressions is substantial enough to be readily visible under moderate magnification. The breadth of affected elements — spanning all obverse lettering (IN GOD WE TRUST, LIBERTY), the full date, and the upper hair detail — indicates a significant angular or rotational displacement during the hubbing process that shifted the secondary impression across the entire die face rather than in a localized area. Collectors should examine proof specimens under 10x magnification, looking for clear doubling separation on the lettering and hair, and should verify the ODV-003 hub variant for complete attribution.

Die Markers

• UVC-185
• DMR-007
• Stage A:
• Obverse and Reverse are EDS
• Stage B:
• MDS (unconfirmed)
• Stage C:
• LDS (unconfirmed)

Attribution History

• Discovered by Lee Hiemke
• Expert attribution by VarietyVista

External References