1998-D Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-012

Description

A bar extending from the middle of the knee to the top of the foot to the left of the statue on the sixth column characterizes this twelfth doubled die reverse for the 1998-D Lincoln Memorial Cent. The Wexler Team attributed this variety with the designation 1998-D 1c WDDR-012, noting no other known cross-references. The reverse carries three diagnostic die chips: one to the left of the upper first memorial column, one within the upper M of AMERICA, and one within the upper N of ONE. No notable obverse die markers were recorded. The "bar" description refers to a linear element of doubled design visible along the Lincoln statue's leg within the Memorial — a portion of Frank Gasparro's detailed reverse design that depicted the seated Lincoln statue visible between the columns. The 1998-D cent was struck at the Denver Mint during an era of enormous cent production, when Denver and Philadelphia together produced billions of cents annually. Doubled die varieties on the statue detail within the Memorial reverse require careful examination, as the tiny scale of the seated Lincoln figure means that doubling manifests as subtle extra lines or bars rather than the more obvious letter spreading seen on larger design elements. Twelve documented DDRs for a single date and mint confirms the depth of variety research on late-era Memorial Cents.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Steve Young Cross References: None known
• None known; Wexler Variety ID: 1998-D 1¢ WDDR-012
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References