2015 Doubled Die Reverse WDDR-010

Description

Tenth in the Wexler reverse doubled die census for the 2015 Jefferson nickel, WDDR-010 presents Class VIII (Tilted Hub) doubling below the upper left portion of the door frame on the center door above the steps of Monticello — a diagnostic zone that has proven repeatedly sensitive to hub tilting events across the Return to Monticello series. Class VIII doubling arises when the hub and die are not perfectly parallel during impression, causing one side of the design to receive more displacement than the other and producing a gradient of doubling intensity across the die surface. Felix Schlag's Monticello reverse, reintroduced in 2006 with refinements by Jamie Franki, places Thomas Jefferson's Palladian estate at the center of the composition, where the columned portico and central doorway provide the fine architectural lines most susceptible to revealing tilt-induced displacement. The obverse die carries a notable diagnostic: a die dot positioned to the left of Jefferson's right eye, serving as an independent fingerprint for the working die that can be confirmed without examining the doubling itself. No significant reverse die markers beyond the doubling were recorded. Philadelphia produced approximately 1.59 billion nickels in 2015, a high-volume production year that generated extensive die usage. Collectors examining this variety should first locate the die dot near Jefferson's right eye on the obverse to verify the correct die marriage, then turn to the reverse and examine the center doorway area at 15-20x magnification, focusing on the space immediately below the upper-left doorframe where the tilted hub displacement manifests as a secondary shelf or shadow line beneath the primary architectural detail.

Die Markers

• Obverse: Die dot to left of Jefferson's right eye.
• Reverse: None noted.

External References