1955 1C Doubled Die Obverse

 The 1955 doubled die Lincoln cent is perhaps the most well-known variety error in all of numismatics. This is partly due to its minting and discovery happening most serendipitously during a period when coin collecting was enjoying a boom in popularity during the post-war years of the 1950s. Many examples turned up in 23-cent packs of cigarettes containing two one-cent coins as change via vending machines that accepted only quarters. These coins were found mainly in New England, though they popped up elsewhere as well. Numismatic legend has it that mint employees were aware that several thousand 1955 doubled die cents had been made by accident but opted to let them go instead of recalling and destroying a batch of Lincoln cents numbering into the tens of thousands. Doubling is easily seen with the naked eye in the date, inscription LIBERTY and motto IN GOD WE TRUST.

• Category: Lincoln Cents, Wheat Reverse (1909-1958)
• Mint: Philadelphia
• Obverse Designer: Victor D. Brenner
• Reverse Designer: Victor D. Brenner
• Composition: Bronze
• Weight: 3.11g
• Diameter: 19mm
• Edge: Plain