As a collector of toned coins, I read Weimar White's guest commentary in
Coin World with great interest and I think he makes a couple of interesting points. But, I think he also makes the same leap of faith that many collectors of perfect white coins do, that Intercept Shield products are the answer to the very real possibility that the environment will change the surface of their coins after they leave the Mint. Only time will tell. I would think that with Mr. White’s professional background, he would realize that it is the nature of man-made metals to change state. Steel rusts, aluminum corrodes, copper darkens and silver oxidizes, and unless you live in an area with very low humidity or have taken measures to control the storage environment you stand a very good chance of being disappointed.
Mr. White makes a very good argument that toning is damage, but something that bothers me more than whether or not to call toned coins damaged is the “coin doctors” that try to imitate not only toning, but also attempt to make a coin appear as though it just came out of the Mint. In both instances, the “coin doctor” is practicing deception and collectors are the losers because it all comes down to money; you have it, they want it.
I also have to wonder. Is anyone really concerned about the loss of a couple hundred micrograms of silver? I don’t think so. Will Mr. White’s scientific proof that toning is damage change the collecting preferences of many collectors? Again, I don’t think so. I don’t see it changing many collecting habits whatsoever. Unless you are trying to collect coins like some folks play the stock market, when all is said and done, it still boils down to collect what you like. You should become educated about what you want to collect, but it really matters little what anyone else thinks of your collection. It only has to please one person, you.
One forum member doesn't think that a toned coin could possibly be mint state. Why not? I've got quite a few
Jefferson nickels that were taken from ‘60s Uncirculated Mint Sets that are nicely toned. Many long time collectors and a few dealers I’ve spoken with feel that it’s impurities such as trace amounts cobalt in the raw nickel that the blanks are made from that has caused the
Jefferson nickel to turn various shades of dark blue.
I also received an Uncirculated Mint Set from a friend that contained an extremely toned
Washington quarter and I removed it from the sealed packaging myself. The Mint package contained no holes and none of the coins surrounding the quarter were toned, yet the quarter was purple with gold specks and looks like it had been washed, but not rinsed properly. In these cases, the coins came out of Mint sealed packages so why wouldn’t they qualify as Mint State? The “Official
ANA Grading Standards for United States” Coins states, “The term “Uncirculated” interchangeable with “Mint State” refers to a coin which has never seen circulation.” This does not mean that every toned coin is Mint State any more than it means every blast white coins is, but it does mean that they certainly can be.
In summary, I think that Mr. White makes some fine points and I will even concede that some collectors will agree that toned coins are damaged. But, I doubt that those collectors ever bothered with that facet of the hobby in the first place. I witnessed the popularity of collecting toned coins come and go over the last 45 years that I’ve been collecting and while it’s currently in an accepted phase, it will likely revert one of these days.
I was also amused that one forum member’s solution was not to collect toned or blast white coins. Whatever works for you. I don’t care much for anything produced after 1964 and consider it “junk metal” coins probable because I grew up with the sound of silver jingling in my pant pockets so I guess we all have a different way of looking at things.
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Posted 07/01/2005 9:51 pm
