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 Replies: 7 / Views: 3,370 |
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New Member
Canada
1 Posts |
Hi everone, I was looking through my old pennies and found this particular one to have a more goldish tone to it. I was wondering if they had errors for that year and maybe ran a few brass pennies like the 1859 one. Here are a few pictures. Let me know what you guys think? Could this be a one of a kind, or am I dreaming?   *** Moved by Staff to a more appropriate forum. *** |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
3049 Posts |
Depending on environmental conditions it's very VERY likely for bronze to turn this colour. On many different coin web sites there's probably 20 posts per year of people asking if they have the 1859 brass cent. The only true way a person could know is if the coin is tested by XRF.
While there are others on here who have a lot more knowledge, I can say I have never read up on any 1888 brass cent. But I hope one of the experts chime in eventually.
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Moderator
 Canada
10456 Posts |
There are legit examples of off-metals errors in this series, albeit, very rare: http://www.bankofcanadamuseum.ca/co...-1-cent-1882You have to have it tested with an XRF (which is non-destructive). I have tested a number of examples of coins from members here that "looked like brass", so far, none were actually brass. "Discovery follows discovery, each both raising and answering questions, each ending a long search, and each providing the new instruments for a new search." -- J. Robert OppenheimerContent of this post is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses...0/deed.en_USMy eBay store
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New Member
 Canada
1 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
5324 Posts |
Get it graded by PCGS and off to a major auction house, there is a huge amount of large cent collectors. Notice you are in Quebec, TCNC will send this coin to PCGS, probably worth all the fees involved if not counterfeit
Edited by john100
05/24/2017 5:03 pm
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Pillar of the Community
 Canada
5585 Posts |
Your XRF readings are right in the ballpark for Bronze, not brass. For brass, you would need at least 4-5% Zinc, far outweighing the tin. The original called for was to be 95 copper, 4 tin and 1 zinc but, back then, mixing the alloys and pouring them made your coin well within accepted specs. Yours is bronze that has been heavily cleaned with any number of cleaning compounds from under the kitchen sink.... that's what makes it yellow or brassy.
Edited by okiecoiner
05/24/2017 5:18 pm
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Moderator
Canada
10456 Posts |
There is little or no tin (Sn) in brass, that is a bronze alloy. The off metal brass coin I linked from the currency museum in my previous post is the composition of cartridge brass, which is almost 30% zinc.
"Discovery follows discovery, each both raising and answering questions, each ending a long search, and each providing the new instruments for a new search." -- J. Robert OppenheimerContent of this post is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses...0/deed.en_USMy eBay store
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
955 Posts |
This thread is why I joined CCF. Great stuff.
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Replies: 7 / Views: 3,370 |
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Posted 05/22/2017 3:59 pm
