1985 Doubled Die Obverse WDDO-003

Description

Documented across two die stages with distinct marker sets, WDDO-003 on the 1985 Philadelphia Lincoln Memorial cent shows a spread towards the center on the date and the right bottom of the bust, with light extra thickness on IN GOD WE TRUST and LIBERTY. The two-stage documentation reveals how the die evolved during production. Stage A obverse carries a die gouge in the field to the left of Lincoln's shoulder, while Stage B develops different characteristics: very late die state (VLDS) wear and a die scratch running southwest from the bottom of the back of the head. The reverse follows suit — Stage A has no significant markers, but Stage B introduces a small die gouge between the U and N in UNITED. This stage-dependent marker profile means attribution must account for which die state a given specimen represents. The extra thickness on the motto and LIBERTY distinguishes WDDO-003 from the date-only WDDO-002, placing it in an intermediate category between the focused and widespread doubled dies for the date. Struck at Philadelphia on copper-plated zinc planchets at 2.5 grams and 19mm from the 1985 mintage of approximately 5.65 billion cents (Wexler ID: 1985 1¢ WDDO-003).

Attribution History

• None known; Wexler Variety ID: 1985 1¢ WDDO-003
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References