1946-S/D Jefferson Nickel Repunched Mintmark

During the 1940s the U.S. Mint punched mintmarks into working dies by hand, one letter at a time, rather than using a single mintmark hub as is done today. This manual process left plenty of room for mistakes, and the 1946-S/D Jefferson nickel is one of the better-known repunched mintmark (RPM) results from that era. On close inspection, traces of an underlying D punch can be seen peeking out from beneath and around the final S mintmark on the reverse, just to the right of Monticello.

The variety is cataloged among Jefferson nickel repunched mintmarks that flourished in the mid-1940s, a period when the Mint reintroduced normal cupronickel composition after the wartime silver "war nickel" alloy was discontinued. Collectors who specialize in mintmark varieties pursue coins like this one as an affordable window into Mint production practices before modern hubbing eliminated such errors.

Because the doubling is confined to the mintmark rather than the design, this variety is typically collected as a supplemental piece within a Jefferson nickel set rather than a headline rarity, but well-struck, clearly doubled examples are popular with variety specialists.

The Jefferson nickel was introduced in 1938, designed by Felix Schlag, replacing the Buffalo nickel. Mintmarks in this era were individually hand-punched into each working die at the Philadelphia Mint before dies were shipped to branch mints, a labor-intensive step that occasionally produced misplaced, doubled, or over-punched mintmarks when an engraver corrected an error or reused a die intended for a different facility.

The 1946-S/D variety arose when a die punch showing a D was subsequently repunched with an S, likely correcting an initial mismatch between the die's intended destination and its markings. The coin was struck at the San Francisco Mint in 1946, a year of high nickel production as the country resumed civilian coin output after World War II.

Repunched mintmark varieties like this one were largely unrecognized by the collecting public until dedicated variety researchers in the mid-20th century began cataloging them, and they remain a niche but active area of Jefferson nickel collecting today.

The obverse features Thomas Jefferson in profile with the legend IN GOD WE TRUST above and LIBERTY along with the date 1946 to the right. The reverse depicts Monticello, Jefferson's home, with FIVE CENTS below and E PLURIBUS UNUM above; the mintmark sits to the right of the building.

On this variety, the mintmark shows a clear S with a partial D visible underneath or beside it, most easily seen under 5x-10x magnification with raking light. The extra metal from the underlying letter creates a subtle doubled or shadowed outline rather than a full second letter.

The coin is struck in standard 75% copper, 25% nickel alloy, 21.2mm in diameter, with a plain edge, identical in size and weight to all other circulation-strike Jefferson nickels of the period.

Collectors should compare suspected examples against reference photos in variety guides, since die chips, machine doubling, and grease-filled dies can mimic a true repunched mintmark; a genuine RPM shows a consistent secondary letter outline in the same relative position on multiple known specimens.

Most 1946-S/D repunched mintmark nickels trade modestly above common-date Jefferson nickel prices, generally in the low tens of dollars in circulated grades and somewhat more in choice uncirculated condition, since demand comes from a specialized subset of variety collectors rather than the broader market.

Value is heavily tied to the strength and clarity of the doubling; examples with a bold, unmistakable underlying D can command a premium over marginal or weakly doubled pieces. Certification by a variety-attributing service adds confidence and liquidity for buyers.

As with most mintmark varieties, overall coin grade also matters, and a well-preserved uncirculated example with strong luster will always outperform a worn, heavily circulated piece regardless of the doubling.