Continuing List To Show Everyones Latest Acquisitions

1873 Proof 3 cent Nickel coin. Love the design. Pardon the photo not being ideal.

The cleaning is obvious - not wanting to believe/accept what you've been told doesn't change reality!

I teach all the time - it is my primary focus here on CCF - review my 1000s of posts.

Your coin shows lots of parallel lines/scratches on each side - a sure sign of a mechanical (i.e., surface contact) cleaning.

Regarding the 1926 commemorative coin: I am still young to numismatics but what my eye has taught me from buying world junk silver coins that are sold at a reduced price of near silver value due to the coin being cleaned are the following characteristics:

a) For a coin from 1926 there should be some black or deep red tarnish at the borders of the design (say around the outline of the two side portraits and around the bell), absence of any of it is a sign cleaning has been done.

b) Notice the diagonal streaks in the open fields akin to the streaks you get sometimes from cleaning a mirror improperly? That is another potential sign of cleaning. Sometimes it is the nature of the planchet as you see with some Lincoln cents in MS but as this shows on one side diagonally and the other a different direction and less deep this shows it has probably been cleaned.

c) Many coins before I would say those from before the late 1980's have been cleaned. Only when grading standards were well-established by grading companies around that time did people begin to understand the various levels of cleaning and how an aggressive one takes away from the value of the coin. Before this period, numismatists were a bit divided on what was an accepted level of cleaning but experts could identify a coin with a harsh cleaning and would usually avoid acquiring such coins. A very light one with mild soap, distilled water patted with a soft cloth and then placed for 20 seconds in a folded tissue soaked with a few drops of acetone to quicken the drying process and remove fresh fingerprints for under 20 secs is what I would consider a light cleaning and the most one should do. This should also be done only with low value coins (any circulated coin worthless than $50 or, in some cases, under $20 such as very old Lincoln wheat cents).

Some folks will disagree with point c) as there are collectors who will NEVER clean a coin UNLESS it was literally found in the ground caked with soil and who knows what. But I think if you consider what I mentioned for cleaning as the top limit, you should be fine.

As for your coin it is a lovely commemorative for its design and, despite it being aggressively cleaned, remains attractive. If you decide to sell it your best buyer would be one starting to collect commemoratives and possibly has a modest budget. This would be an excellent starter coin for them.

@coinnewcomer1:


Thanks for taking the time to talk about your thoughts on cleaning of coins.
I really appreciate it. From the site that I bought this coin, it did have pictures, but the pictures made it look good, there was no sign the hash marks on it and the seller did not disclose this fact. I paid $90.00 for this. I will buy a better coin and sell this one off (at a big loss to me) But live and learn.

thanks again for your thoughts.
I would have answered much earlier, but I had a work crew here at the house replacing all my exterior windows and I HAD to keep an eye on my 'coin room'.

2010 Alderney .
5 Pounds Silver Proof Coin - Battle of Britain 70th Anniversary Commemorative.

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Very nice!

Fantastic adds!