1997 Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-017

Description

Following WDDR-016 as the seventeenth doubled die reverse for the 1997 Philadelphia Mint Lincoln Memorial Cent, this variety marks the approximate midpoint of the known DDR census for the date. The Wexler catalog's sequential numbering reflects the order of attribution rather than the order of die manufacture, meaning WDDR-017 was the seventeenth variety confirmed and assigned a permanent catalog position — not necessarily the seventeenth die produced with doubling. This distinction matters because it means the catalog records the history of discovery as much as the history of production, with earlier numbers generally representing varieties found by pioneering researchers and later numbers added as the collecting community grew more systematic. The Memorial reverse columns remain the most reliable search targets: their straight vertical edges betray hub displacement more readily than the curved or textured areas of the design. Cataloged as Wexler Variety ID 1997 1c WDDR-017 and attributed by the Wexler Team, WDDR-017 sits at the demographic center of a remarkably deep single-year census.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Steve Young Cross References: None known
• None known; Wexler Variety ID: 1997 1¢ WDDR-017
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References