1972 Doubled Die Obverse WDDO-025

Description

The twenty-fifth Wexler-attributed doubled die obverse for the 1972 Philadelphia Lincoln cent, WDDO-025 presents a clockwise spread showing remnants of an extra horizontal bar of the "2" in the date above the normal horizontal bar. No cross-references to other attribution services have been established (Wexler Variety ID: 1972 1¢ WDDO-025). The obverse die markers focus on the LIBERTY area: a die scratch runs south from the top right of the Y in LIBERTY, and a die scratch runs north-northwest to south-southeast below the right side of the R in LIBERTY. These LIBERTY-region scratches are convenient diagnostics because the area is typically examined closely anyway when evaluating potential doubled die candidates — meaning the confirmation markers are found in the same viewing field as the doubling evidence itself. On the reverse, a small die gouge (dot) can be found south of the right side of the second A in AMERICA, and a small die gouge (dot) appears above the right Memorial base. The paired dot-type reverse gouges — one near AMERICA and one near the Memorial base — create a two-point identification system on the reverse that can quickly confirm or eliminate a candidate specimen. WDDO-025 sits near the end of the documented 1972 WDDO sequence, representing varieties that were likely attributed later in the cataloging effort as the more dramatic doubled dies had already been found and attention turned to increasingly subtle specimens with modest extra-bar presentations on the date.

Attribution History

• Discovered by John Bryan Cross References: None known
• None known; Wexler Variety ID: 1972 1¢ WDDO-025
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References