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Is there a correct way to clean ancient coins or are we all ruining them?
I saw a post from a museum in Ohio that said any cleaning at all destroys the patina, but a collector on YouTube scrubbed a Roman coin with olive oil and it looked great. Now I'm stuck wondering if the experts are being too careful or if the YouTube guy is just lucky. Which side do you lean on for preserving value?
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aaronrobinson8h ago
My buddy Dan bought a crusty old Spanish silver coin at a flea market. He spent a week gently rubbing it with a toothpick and warm water every night. Turned out to be a rare 1700s piece worth way more than he paid for it. Guess it depends on how careful you are.
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charliew997h ago
Oh man that's awesome for your buddy! I had a similar thing happen with a beat up old Morgan dollar I found at an antique shop. It was all dark and grimy so I just used some distilled water and a soft cloth, took it real slow over a few days. Turned out to be a rare 1893-S in way better shape than I thought underneath all that gunk. Got it graded and it came back as a solid VF, paid maybe 20 bucks for it. I learned the hard way though that you gotta be patient, saw a guy ruin a nice colonial coin by scrubbing it too hard. Your buddy definitely did it right with the toothpick trick, that's the only way to go!
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