1955 Lincoln Double-Die Obverse Ungraded
THIS IS THE FAMOUS 1955 DOUBLE STRUCK OBVERSE........ THE MISTAKE THAT STARTED THE COLLECTING CRAZE IN THE 50'S.......... The very popular & highly collectible RARE KEY DATE 1955/55 Double Die Lincoln Wheat Cent. The coin is in raw uncertified condition and is a beautiful original. This coin is guaranteed genuine. It was found in circulation 'back in the day' by my father who was a member of the American Numismatic Society. He would get a bag or two of coins from the bank every week & go through them on the weekend while we watched the Red Sox play baseball on TV. This coin has not been professionally graded, but has a nice brown tone with some red highlights in the grooves & high points. There are a couple of small minor oxidation marks (see pictures), but I feel it has a good sharp strike on both sides with prominent doubling on the front and nice unworn wheats on the back. In researching for this listing, I've seen examples in similar comparable condition go for around $2,000-2,500 and more. However, with the 100th Anniversary of the Lincoln Cent in 2009, interest in this key date is steadily increasing and I feel with the current renewed demand, that this coin is still a growth item and will only continue to increase in value, making it a great investment in uncertain economic times.
I took several pictures for this listing. It's amazing how differently the coin looked from one picture to the next, so I have included a few of them with the different exposures. However, despite the different exposures, I was still not able to capture the true overall chocolaty brown color of the actual coin, although I did get close in a couple of shots. But,... I'm including all the pictures to highlight the various aspects of the coin
for your consideration. This first picture shows how nicely doubled the date is. The second picture gives a good indication of the condition. The third picture is with a lighter exposure, but shows how nice the doubling is, and allows you to see the 'In God We Trust' clearly along the top. The fourth picture was shot under different lighting, and goes to show you how some flaws tend to disappear & others show up. So, it's included to give you a more well-rounded insight into what you can expect. Finally, the last picture shows the back of the coin. Please look at these pictures and grade the coin for yourself as this is the actual coin you will receive. I am not assigning a grade to the coin myself as grading is very subjective and I am by no means an expert. One person may grade a coin as an AU58 while another may grade it as an AU55, so I will leave that up to you to judge for yourself. This is not merely a place-holder, but rather a very nice looking coin that would make a great addition for any coin hobbyist or collector looking to add this prestigious key-date to their 1¢ Lincoln collection. The following chart from US-Coin-Values-Advisor.Com illustrates the investment value of the Double-Struck Lincoln Cent. Even in Extra Fine 40 (XF-40) this coin was valued at $1600 in 2006, and is worth even more today. If you feel as I do that this coin grades better than XF-40, then you can see what a solid investment & value awaits you, with return rates near 25% in past trends, and most likely better return rates in the future as the legend & notoriety of this coin continues to grow. 1955 Double Die Lincoln Cents Historical Value Trends. The infamous 1955 Double Die Obverse (DDO) Error is one of the most sought after coins collected, and is considered a must-have major key of the Lincoln series. This coin is in 'as found' condition, and because I have not attempted to give an actual numerical grade to the coin, the high resolution pictures speak for themselves. You will see that a good sharp strike is present on both the obverse and reverse with very prominent doubling and full sharp unworn wheats. The coin's actual color overall is a natural chocolate toned brown with some red highlights showing in the grooves & protected areas and at various high points. By the way, the coin was/is stored in a 3-layer Lucite coin holder. The middle layer is translucent red, with gold embossed lettering that says DOUBLED DIE above the coin, and 1955 below the coin. The 4 corners have screw-sets that hold the clear outer layers that sandwich the red middle layer. I realize that this is not the kind of archival holder preferred by collectors today, although it does present the coin nicely. This kind of holder was originally available at the better coin shops during the 1960s. This legendary Mint error was created when a working obverse die rotated between impressions from a working hub. Mated with a normal reverse die, this doubled obverse die error produced a scarce number of cents at the Philadelphia Mint during the summer of 1955. The greater the distance between the double dies, the more valuable the coin! Take a close look and you will see that this coin is a great example, as the distance is quite large. Being the definitive error of the Lincoln cent series, the 1955 Double Die continues to steadily increase in value... and as such, is a great investment! If you want a really nicely defined key-date coin, this is it! A GREAT PRICE FOR A WONDERFUL COIN! CERTIFIED PRIORITY SHIPPING AND FULL INSURANCE IS MANDATORY ON THIS ITEM. PLEASE WRITE FOR RATES. 
Mintage: Business Strike / Philadelphia 
