Green stuff on circulated 2 cent piece?

berylcoin

After removing a raw two cent piece from its old stapled 2X2 I noticed a very small gob of pasty turquoise "green stuff" on the edge of the coin. I carefully removed it and found that it had eaten through the toning, leaving a spot of bare red copper.

First, was this likely corrosion from some moisture or could it be something more sinister? Second, do I need to do anything to keep it from coming back? It is an otherwise nice, unproblematic, darkly toned XF coin.



BC

dakra

Sounds like PVC (Poly Vinyl Chlorine?) As long as you got rid of it as it tends to grow. I'm not an expert but recently I have been letting my coins with PVC soak in Baby Oil overnight and then using a q-tip...carefully... to remove it.

Others may be able to give you tips...
-David

berylcoin

Thanks for the response

It seems like PVC slime, if from a previous flip or holder, would cover the surfaces or edges more fully, rather than just the one spot. But, then again, I've never dealt with PVC before.

Anyone else have any thoughts?

BC

truthteller

It's called verdegris. The green slime may be removed with a swab or Q-tip. If the verdegris is a bit thicker, dab with spot with olive oil and wait a couple hours and swab again. If the verdegris is crusty, the copper has been eaten into and corroded. You can use "Blue Ribbon' which is made specifically for copper coins. It is a coin chemical which may dislodge the verdegris over some time after application. However, the corrosion will remain.

TRUTH

berylcoin

Thanks Trth.

The green stuff is already long gone, and came off very nicely with a Q-tip. As such, do I need to apply anything to keep it from returning?

Also, I thought I had read that Blue Ribbon was discontinued. Is it still available?

BC

lathmach

A lot of dealers still have Blue Ribbon, and it comes up on Ebay too.
Blue Ribbon

Ray