Toning

Rainbow toning is like a flower. It is VERY delicate. It is a form of partial toning, and is on it's way to full toning.

Photograph it while you can.

There may be some sort of sealant which may be capable of stopping toning dead in it's tracks; that would be ideal for those who value rainbow toning on their coins.

Is there something which is capable of doing this?
I was thinking on the lines of sprayed acrylic lacquer, directly onto the coin.

If you changed your mind later on, remove the lacquer with acetone. The toning would then be allowed to continue.

Rainbow toning on solid silver tableware would be considered as tarnish. For this application, there are silver polish products - disastrous for coins.

Does it matter if you have to angle the coin to capture the toning?

I can't think of any other kind of collectible antique where natural patina is considered a negative.

I'm not a big fan of toning on modern coins, as we've known for some decades how to store coins to minimize oxidation (though many normal storage methods, like original mint/proof sets, do produce toning.)

Older coins, however, stored carefully in what was considered normal or best practice at the time will have toned. Bag toning on Morgan dollars is part of that coin's history. Again, a 19th century coin that is completely white has almost certainly had its natural patina stripped away artificially.

Not a fan of the tone. Just looks like tarnish to me, even the pretty rainbows don't do a whole lot for me. I would rather have something that looks brand new and shines with a white luster.

However, just as with cars, toys, oil paintings, etc. many people just have their own ideas of what they like. For example those coins with actual paint on them. Copies of older cars made today.
And with such differences in likes and dislikes, manufacturers thrive on making something that some would like and others hate. Even our Mint makes tons of commemoratives for those that like them. Even our own Mint floods the market with way to much STUFF.
And with Toned Coinage, there used to be a separate Forum called something like Toned Coins.
There is a brighter side to all this. For those that run around looking for toned coins, many more regular ones for the rest of us.


I did this back in 1959. All still look the same as then.

Toning is caused by exposure of hydrogen sulfide which is VERY prevalent...it's in ALL air. Toning can be essentially completely halted by removing a coin from exposure to air. It's very simple really. There's no need to use lacquer or any other type of chemical. Just put your coin into an Airtite and use multiple protection layers on top of that to halt the toning process.

Bronze "disease" is nothing more than verdigris. I really, really hate the term.....IT IS VERDIGRIS, not a disease. It's easy enough to stop since it is acid catalyzed. Soak the coin in a dilute solution of sodium bicarbonate to neutralize the acids, rinse well with distilled water, rinse with acetone to dehydrate it and store in an Airtite with multiple layers of protection. After that the verdigris formation process will be essentially halted.

It looks like many of the replies show that no one fully agrees that they truly love all toning, many like some kinds of toning and many others hate the term. I think that all the ways of preservation are amazing. But I think Airtite is the best method. Also loved justcarl's way :D