2012 Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-005

Description

Fifth documented DDR on the 2012 Philadelphia Lincoln Shield Cent, WDDR-005 emerged from only the third year of Shield reverse production, establishing that doubled die varieties appeared early in the new design's history. The Shield Cent reverse introduced by Lyndall Bass in 2010 features a Union shield design with thirteen vertical stripes, horizontal bands, and the ONE CENT denomination on a scroll — geometric elements that create precise reference lines for detecting even subtle hub displacement. Five DDRs cataloged within just three years of the design's debut parallels the early-years DDR discovery patterns seen when the Memorial reverse launched in 1959 and when previous design transitions occurred throughout cent production history. Hub doubling during die manufacture is inherent to the multi-pass hubbing process regardless of the specific reverse design in use, and the fine geometric details of the Shield motif make this design at least as responsive to revealing doubling as any of its predecessors. The 2012 Philadelphia production year contributed billions of cents to circulation, providing a large population base from which variety hunters can search for attributed specimens. Attributed by the Wexler Team under Wexler Variety ID: 2012 1¢ WDDR-005, the Shield Cent's clean geometric lines make doubled die attribution on this design comparatively straightforward once the collector knows which elements to examine.

Attribution History

• Wexler Variety ID: 2012 1¢ WDDR-005
• Expert attribution by Wexler Team

External References