Weird Washington Quarter

An acetone soak might get the black stuff off -- but I wouldn't count on it.

I have a brown quarter. It is -- I am sure -- worth exactly a quarter, but I wanted to try acetone on coins that had no premium. After a brief soak, there was no change. It makes me think it's been painted.

People do weird stuff to coins.

Then again, metal changes color....

tkbslc: Respect, mon (as our Jamaican friends say), but I don't believe I damaged this coin a whole lot, or even a little, if you accept the ANA definition of improper cleaning.

As I recall, the ANA defines improper cleaning as moving metal on the coin. None of the measures I used moved metal.

What about the tarnish remover? Even that is OK per the ANA. You'll recall that there was a huge controversy about dipping when the ANA was debating its position on coin cleaning. In the end, the definition was written in such a way as to exclude dipping from the list of forbidden practices. I view that decision as pandering to coin dealers who have huge inventories of dipped coins. Nevertheless, that's where the ANA landed on the issue.

I have opinions on dipping which we can get into at another time if that discussion would add any value for this forum.

In my book ALL cleaning is to be avoided. In this case you started with a coin worth exactly face value, no more. You, therefore, cannot reduce its value, only damage it further. As it is your coin you can do what ever you want.



But what do I know?

Of course I'd never clean any collectible coin. I worked on this common piece as an experiment, to see what would happen if I stayed within the ANA boundaries. Tkbslc said I'd inflicted a whole lot of damage, but I must respectfully disagree. Everything I did was in bounds, including dipping, as I interpret the following passage from The Official 2015 ANA Grading Standards, 7th Edition (Whitman Publishing LLC, Atlanta), page 38:

"When a coin has been polished, whizzed, artificially retoned, or in any other way changed from its original natural appearance and surface, it must be so stated in a description [by the seller or grading company]... The simple dipping (without abrasion) of an already Uncirculated or Proof coin to brighten the surface does not have to be mentioned unless such dipping alters the appearance from when the coin was first struck; for example, in the instance of a copper or bronze coin in which dipping always produces an unnatural color completely unlike the coin when it was newly minted."

This passage is silent as to silver coins. My conclusion is that it's OK to dip silver as long as it doesn't violate the standard defined above. I did no more than most dealers would do.

It looks to me like what you have is a coin that has been chemically anodized using sulfur. Most likely mixed with sodium hydroxide and given an electric charge while immersed. With silver coins you can get some nice rainbow tones. Most cleaning methods employed will give you little result. You need a chemical wash like "Greased Lightning" to remove the anodizing. Even then, the sulfur has likely bonded with the surface, and it will retain a grey tinge.

Dunno. I've seen this color on Quarters often enough to think it's a reaction to something they regularly come into contact with in the environment, perhaps a dirt bath. There's a little too much brown in the color (assuming the white balance is good) for me to think it's late-stage toning.

Possibly, or attempt at aging perhaps. Regardless the coin will only be worth face from here on out.