2009 District of Columbia Quarter Errors and Doubled-Die Varieties

The District of Columbia quarter opened the one-year 2009 District of Columbia and U.S. Territories Quarters Program. Its reverse honors Washington, D.C.-born composer, pianist, and bandleader Duke Ellington, shown seated at a piano with DUKE ELLINGTON and JUSTICE FOR ALL.

This issue deserves more than a generic “no major varieties” note. PCGS currently catalogs three specific doubled-die reverse varieties for circulation-strike District of Columbia quarters: 2009-P DDR FS-801, 2009-P DDR FS-802, and 2009-D DDR FS-801. NGC VarietyPlus also currently has a District of Columbia listing whose published diagnostic identifies doubling in the piano keyboard and the letters ELL of ELLINGTON. The older CoinHunt source summary therefore should not be carried forward as a blanket statement that 2009 has no recognized significant varieties.

Design and history

The reverse was designed by Joel Iskowitz and sculpted by Don Everhart. Circulation strikes were produced at Philadelphia and Denver; San Francisco produced proof versions.

Standard circulation pieces weigh 5.67 grams, measure 24.30 mm, and have a reeded edge.

Varieties

2009-P DDR FS-801

Do You Have One? What To Look For:

First confirm a P mintmark. PCGS lists the 2009-P District of Columbia DDR FS-801 as a distinct die variety under PCGS #510124.

Do not attribute a coin from thick lettering alone. Compare the reverse with an attributed FS-801 example and require the secondary design to occur in the correct locations and direction. CoinHunt will not invent diagnostic contours where the written source does not establish them clearly.

2009-P DDR FS-802

Do You Have One? What To Look For:

Confirm the P mintmark first. PCGS separately recognizes DDR FS-802 under PCGS #510125. It must not be treated as another stage of FS-801 merely because both are Philadelphia doubled dies.

Require a match to an attributed FS-802 reference. Until exact pickup points are independently documented from a reliable attribution source, CoinHunt should not claim that a particular thick letter identifies FS-802.

2009-D DDR FS-801

Do You Have One? What To Look For:

Confirm the D mintmark, then inspect the reverse. Published attribution material identifies the first letters of ELLINGTON and details of the piano as important diagnostic areas. Require coherent raised secondary design in the documented locations rather than flat shelf-like reduction, random damage, or one thick letter.

PCGS catalogs this variety as 2009-D DDR FS-801, PCGS #510126.

Errors versus varieties

A doubled die is a repeatable die variety. Individual mint errors include off-center strikes, clipped planchets, wrong planchets, missing clad layers, brockages, multiple strikes, and struck-through material.

Die chips and die cracks are progressive die-state features. They may be genuine Mint-made features without being a cataloged FS doubled-die variety. Post-mint scratches, impacts, corrosion, flattened lettering, and displaced metal are damage.

How to examine a 2009 District of Columbia quarter

Confirm the 2009 date and P, D, or S mintmark.
For circulation-strike doubled-die hunting, concentrate on P and D coins.
Inspect ELLINGTON and the piano under 5×–10× magnification.
Use diffuse light and rotate the coin rather than relying on one glare-heavy photograph.
Look for raised, coherent secondary design rather than flat shelf-like reduction.
Compare the candidate with an attributed example of the same mint and FS number.
Photograph the full obverse, full reverse, and diagnostic close-up.
Do not clean the coin.

Diagnostic artwork standard

Use a normal District of Columbia quarter as the location map, then connect it to enlarged, verified pickup points. Do not draw a diagnostic contour until the feature has been verified against an attributed reference.

Sources

Looking to buy or check current prices for this coin?Search it on CoinHunt →