Reference price
$700 – $17,000
Diameter: 19 mm
Thickness: 1.55 mm
Weight: 3.11 grams
Designer: Victor D Brenner
Metal Composition: 95% Copper – 5% Tin and Zinc
The 1955 Doubled Die Obverse DDO Lincoln Cent (Penny) is the most famous doubled die penny and error of them all. They were accidentally produced by the Mint when a working hub and die were slightly misaligned during striking, resulting in a doubled die impression. This impression was imprinted on thousands of 1955 Doubled Die cents, which were mixed with millions of regular circulation strike cents. Although Mint employees caught some of the Doubled Die cents, the Mint decided not to melt millions of cents to retrieve the approximately 20,000 accidentally produced.
Those cents were found around the same year they were released, and many coins were subsequently preserved in AU grades or higher. The estimated number of existing 1955 Doubled Die cents was 20,000-24,000, but this may be closer to 10,000-15,000 in existence in all grades. Being a unique and valuable variety, there are many counterfeit 1955 Doubled Die cents in the market. However, a genuine 1955 Doubled Die cent should display vertical die polishing lines to the left of the letter T in ONE CENT on the reverse side.