1997-D Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-016

Description

Building on the extensive variety census for the 1997 Denver Mint, WDDR-016 represents the sixteenth distinct reverse die documented with hubbing misalignment on this Lincoln Memorial Cent date. The cumulative count provides a window into die production quality control at Denver during 1997 — not as an indictment of manufacturing standards, but as a record of the normal mechanical tolerances inherent in industrial hubbing operations. Modern die production for circulating coinage prioritizes output volume over eliminating every minor alignment variance, and the resulting population of attributable varieties is a byproduct of that practical priority. For variety collectors, each new WDDR discovery adds another potential acquisition to the 1997-D roster, and the ongoing nature of these discoveries means the final count for any date is never truly settled. Roll searching, estate collections, and change-checking continue to yield previously unreported varieties decades after the coins were struck. Cataloged by the Wexler Team under Wexler Variety ID 1997-D 1c WDDR-016, this variety documents another chapter in the comprehensive die study of late Memorial Cents.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Daniel Griffin Cross References: None known
• None known; Wexler Variety ID: 1997-D 1¢ WDDR-016
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References