It is very possible for there to be just one die, and it doesn't have to be from a different year. It would come about the same way the 98, 99, and 2000 WAM's came from. A die hubbed from the proof design hub was accidently used to make business strikes instead of being sent to San Francisco, polished and used for proofs. As to why so far there has only been one seen (but not independently confirmed) is another matter. If it exists, possibly the die failed very early (yes it does happen) and very few pieces were made, or there was something else wrong and most of them were condemned and melted. (why are there so few 1969 S DDO's ?) Why did it take 35 years to find the 82 D copper small date? Then once it was found and everyone started looking for them it took over 2 years to find a second one. Now I admit they are a different item because they didn't make large numbers of them.
Pictures? It is nearly impossible to give feedback with out clear in focus pictures. And other than the link i provided, we haven't seen yours.
There were pictures in another thread but it appears to be gone. It did not appear to be a wide AM to me.
Well what's your opinion on the 1982 penny that took over 30 years to discover and the fact that it took a few years to discover the next one that's after people found out about it . Most people have no idea of even the possibility of a known 1996 wide am. And y is the 92 close am so elusive I've been looking for one for years and have come across some pretty bad corroded coins and still could tell the difference and looking at mine even under 25× microscope there is no erosion. Thanx for your opinion though
Without telling you to rotate your pic's to where people have to either rotate them for you or turn their neck to discomfort I can tell you no for sure this is not a WAM just a damaged coin.
With the rotated pictures I wasn't sure, but once Rick corrected the orientation it was clearly a Close AM
There are millions of people looking at these coins for WAM's. From experts down to novices. If a WAM reverse die was not used in 1996, that calls into dispute the one that has been discovered. Has it been verified, authenticated, certified? It most likely was created either accidentally or on purpose by some method of stress, bending, moving the elements or the plating. Let's say a zinc coin (very malleable) was caught in some machine and just bent ever so slightly, creating a space in between those 2 letters. Etc.
I'm pretty sure a 1996 wide AM does not exist, and yet I check every 1996 cent I get in change, anyway. I guess it's called wishful thinking.
I check my 1983 cents and my 1982 small date D both for weight/copper. Not expecting to find one, but they do exist. The existence of the 1996 WAM is in question. I am doubtful.