Lincoln Wheat Cent
Lincoln Wheat Penny: Major Varieties and Mint Errors
Lincoln Wheat Penny
Mint dates: 1909–1958
Design
Victor David Brenner designed the Lincoln cent introduced in 1909. The obverse carries Abraham Lincoln’s right-facing portrait. The Wheat reverse places ONE CENT and UNITED STATES OF AMERICA between two wheat ears, with E PLURIBUS UNUM above. Philadelphia issues have no mintmark; Denver uses D and San Francisco uses S. The normal bronze-series standard is about 3.11 grams and 19 millimeters with a plain edge. Regular 1943 cents are zinc-coated steel and weigh about 2.70 grams.
Key design details
- Obverse: Lincoln portrait, IN GOD WE TRUST, LIBERTY and date.
- Reverse: Two wheat ears surrounding the denomination and country name.
- Designer initials: V.D.B. appears prominently on 1909 VDB reverses and, in smaller form, on the obverse from 1918 onward.
- Mintmarks: No mark for Philadelphia; D for Denver; S for San Francisco.
- Composition exception: Zinc-coated steel was standard in 1943. Cents dated 1944–1946 used shell-case brass and retained the 3.11-gram standard; the prewar bronze composition returned in 1947.
Scope and attribution standard
This review draft carries forward only the major Wheat-cent varieties and documented error types named in the approved source list. Empty years are omitted. Regular key dates such as 1909-S VDB and 1914-D may be valuable, but they are not mint errors and therefore are not padded into the variety checklist. Variety Vista and CONECA provide the primary catalog framework in this rotation; PCGS records provide exact cross-checks for the major marketplace-recognized attributions. No source photographs are reproduced. [1][2][3]
About the diagrams: Every illustration below is an original CoinHunt schematic, not a coin photograph. On the obverse maps, LIBERTY is correctly placed in the left field, while the date and mintmark are at lower right. Composition and mechanical-error diagrams show the relevant test or error anatomy instead of pointing at a meaningless spot on a generic disc.
Varieties
Quick jump: 1909 · 1917 · 1922 · 1936 · 1941 · 1942 · 1942-S · 1944-D · 1946-S · 1955 · 1956-D · 1958
1909
1909 VDB DDO-001 (FS-1101)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Look for strong, rounded hub doubling spreading west-northwest on BERTY of LIBERTY and the 190 of the date. The reverse must be the VDB reverse. Flat, shelf-like reduction is machine doubling, not this die. [1]
Catalog references: Variety Vista DDO-001; CONECA 1-O-IV; FS-01-1909-1101. Specific attribution record.
1909 VDB DDO-002
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Inspect the date for extra thickness, with separation most evident on the first 9. This is a different die from the much stronger DDO-001, so match the complete Variety Vista die markers before attributing it. [1]
Catalog references: Variety Vista DDO-002. Specific attribution record.
1917
1917 DDO-001 (FS-101)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Look for strong counterclockwise doubling on the date, IN GOD WE TRUST and LIBERTY. Use those widely published primary pickup points and confirm the complete die-marker pattern. The secondary elements should be raised and rounded, not flat strike doubling. [1]
Catalog references: Variety Vista DDO-001; CONECA 1-O-V-CCW; FS-01-1917-101. Specific attribution record.
1922
1922-D No D, Strong Reverse (FS-401, Die Pair II)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Lead with the strong, sharply defined reverse and confirm the complete Die Pair II marker set. Do not attribute this coin from a missing D or one date-strength feature alone: weak-D pairs, other die pairs, wear, damage and removed mintmarks are different. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS FS-401; Die Pair II; Strong Reverse. Specific attribution record.
1936
1936 DDO Type 1 (FS-101)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Look for the strongest spread on the date and LIBERTY, with genuine notching and rounded secondary design. Confirm the precise die markers because the three major 1936 doubled-die obverses are separate dies. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS FS-101; major 1936 DDO Type 1. Specific attribution record.
1936 DDO Type 2 (FS-102)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Inspect the date and IN GOD WE TRUST for a second raised impression. Its direction and strength differ from Types 1 and 3; compare the entire affected lettering and the published die markers. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS FS-102; major 1936 DDO Type 2. Specific attribution record.
1936 DDO Type 3 (FS-103)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Look for the Type 3 pattern of raised hub doubling in the date and obverse lettering. Do not assign Type 3 merely because a digit looks thick; the direction, notching and die markers must agree. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS FS-103; major 1936 DDO Type 3. Specific attribution record.
1941
1941 DDO-001 (FS-101)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Inspect the date and LIBERTY for rounded hub doubling. On circulated coins the separation may soften, so rely on several matching letters or digits rather than one distorted edge. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS FS-101; major 1941 doubled-die obverse. Specific attribution record.
1942
1942 DDO-001 (FS-101)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Look for the recognized obverse hub-doubling pattern in the date and lettering. The secondary image must be raised and consistent across multiple devices; isolated flat doubling is not enough. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS FS-101; major 1942 doubled-die obverse. Specific attribution record.
1942-S
1942-S/S/S DDO & RPM (FS-101/301)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
This combined attribution requires both the recognized doubled-die obverse and the tripled/repunched S mintmark. Match the doubled obverse devices and the remnants of the earlier S punches around the final mintmark. Do not confuse it with the separate 1942-S/S RPM, FS-512. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS #37816; FS-101/301; combined DDO and RPM. Specific attribution record.
1944-D
1944-D D/S (FS-511)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Look beneath and around the D for the diagnostic remnants of an underlying S. The shape and location of those remnants must match the recognized die. An added mintmark, contact mark or plating blister is not the D/S. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS FS-511; D over S over-mintmark. Specific attribution record.
1946-S
1946-S S/D (FS-511)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Inspect the S for the specific underlying D remnants of the recognized over-mintmark. Confirm the full mintmark geometry and supporting die markers; irregular edges alone are not sufficient. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS FS-511; S over D over-mintmark. Specific attribution record.
1955
1955 DDO-001 (FS-101)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
The famous die shows bold, rounded separation on the date, LIBERTY and IN GOD WE TRUST and can be seen without extreme magnification. The so-called “Poor Man’s Doubled Die” is die deterioration near the final 5 and is not this variety. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS FS-101; Variety Vista DDO-001. Specific attribution record.
1956-D
1956-D D/D, Shadow D (FS-501)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Look for a distinct secondary D displaced from the final D, producing the “shadow” effect. Match its direction, spacing and die markers. A flattened mintmark from a hit is damage, not an RPM. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS FS-501; repunched mintmark. Specific attribution record.
1958
1958 DDO-001 (FS-101)
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Look for strong raised doubling on the date, LIBERTY and IN GOD WE TRUST. This is an extreme rarity; any apparent discovery requires exact die-marker agreement and expert authentication before any claim is made. [3]
Catalog references: PCGS FS-101; major 1958 doubled-die obverse. Specific attribution record.
Errors
The entries below are errors, not repeatable die varieties. The two dated transitional pieces are specifically documented for the Wheat series; the remaining classes can occur on any date and must be authenticated from the physical evidence on the individual coin.
1943 bronze transitional error
Applicable date(s): 1943
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
A genuine example was struck on a bronze planchet instead of the normal zinc-coated steel planchet. It should weigh about 3.11 grams and should not react like an ordinary magnetic steel cent. Copper plating, altered 1948 dates and foreign planchets are common counterfeits; weight and magnetism are screening tests, not authentication. [3]
1944 steel transitional error
Applicable date(s): 1944
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
A genuine example was struck on a leftover zinc-coated steel planchet instead of the normal copper-alloy planchet. It should weigh about 2.70 grams and be magnetic. Plated cents and altered dates are common; require metallurgical and die authentication. [3]
Off-center strike
Applicable date(s): 1909–1958
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Part of the planchet was outside the collar and dies. A genuine example has a blank crescent with corresponding design loss; the date and mintmark, if present, determine how specifically it can be identified. [4]
Broadstrike
Applicable date(s): 1909–1958
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
The coin was struck without proper collar restraint, allowing it to spread beyond normal diameter. Look for a complete but expanded design and an abnormal rim rather than post-mint flattening. [6]
Double or multiple strike
Applicable date(s): 1909–1958
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Two or more press strikes left overlapping raised design. The displacement must follow coining geometry; a vise coin or impact-damaged cent does not show the same metal flow. [6]
Brockage
Applicable date(s): 1909–1958
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
A struck coin remained in the press and impressed a recessed, mirror-image design into the next planchet. The transferred side must be incuse and reversed, not merely flattened. [6]
Clipped planchet
Applicable date(s): 1909–1958
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
A blank was punched from an overlapping or edge position in the metal strip. Genuine clips show compatible metal flow and often a weakened rim opposite the clip—the Blakesley effect. [6]
Lamination or split planchet
Applicable date(s): 1909–1958
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
An alloy flaw caused metal to peel or separate before or after striking. Genuine lamination follows the planchet metal and is different from corrosion, gouging or peeling aftermarket plating. [6]
Struck-through
Applicable date(s): 1909–1958
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
Foreign material came between a die and planchet, leaving a recessed texture or missing design. A retained struck-through keeps the object; most examples preserve only its impression. [5]
Wrong-planchet or off-metal strike
Applicable date(s): 1909–1958
Do You Have One? What To Look For:
The cent design was struck on a planchet intended for another denomination or metal. Diameter, weight, composition, edge and design fit must agree. Plating is not a Mint error. [6]
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Sources
- Variety Vista: Lincoln Cent Doubled Die Book, Volume 1 (1909–1958). Variety Vista / CONECA. Primary doubled-die catalog, attribution numbers, descriptions and die-marker records. Accessed September 25, 2026.
- CONECA: Lincoln Cent Doubled Dies, 1909–1929. CONECA. Published attribution descriptions and cross-references for the early Wheat-cent doubled dies.
- PCGS CoinFacts: Lincoln Cent, Wheat Reverse (1909–1958). PCGS. Series catalog and specific records linked beneath each listed major variety and transitional error.
- PCGS: The Popular Off-Center Strike. PCGS. Off-center-strike definition and collector diagnostics.
- PCGS: The Two Types of Struck-Through Error Coins. PCGS. Struck-through and retained struck-through definitions.
- CONECA: Glossary of Error-Variety Terms. CONECA. Definitions for broadstrikes, multiple strikes, brockages, clips, laminations and wrong-planchet errors.
Editorial boundary: Variety Vista/CONECA and PCGS are credited for cataloging and diagnostic research. CoinHunt does not reproduce their photographs. All SVG inspection maps here are original educational schematics and are not substitutes for certified comparison images.
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Revision history
- : Rebuilt the Wheat-cent guide in the approved design-wide varieties-and-errors format for editorial review. — Bradley Jones
- : Retargeted error schematics, normalized frontmatter, completed source anchors, and cleaned SVG labels after editorial review. — Bradley Jones
- : Corrected the 1922, 1942-S, and 1956-D attributions; rebuilt diagnostic art to match Wheat-cent anatomy; unified citations; and repaired navigation. — Bradley Jones