Repunched Date (RPD)
A majority of Indian Cent die varieties are repunched dates. Until 1909, each die’s date was placed by hand using a hard steel punch and a hammer when the die was annealed (a soft state). In 1909, the Mint began placing the date on the master hub. A repunched date was caused by the date punch being hit more than once with a mallet. Some RPDs are subtle, others are very extreme.
For an in-depth analysis of Repunched Dates, see Wexler’s article by clicking here.