1952S penny with steel coating ?

Comments

• cosmos66 Posts: 732

  October 26, 2003 8:39AM

  This is just a guess but it could be coated with mercury and the coating is rubbing off in spots. People used to perform magic tricks like that ... rubbing a penny with a mercury soaked rag to make it change colors.
  
  Just a thought

  Paul in Pine Hill
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• richbeat Posts: 2,288 ✭

  October 26, 2003 8:48AM

  Mercury coated or plated is most likely what it is. A post mint alteration with no premium. The reverse pretty much tells the tale.

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• rollmeupAbe Posts: 56

  October 26, 2003 9:24AM

  Thanks for the guesses. It is always interesting to hear what ideas people have to explain unusual coins. I never knew people used mercury to change the color of copper but I bet my high school science teacher who schocked us to teach us about electricity would do something like this.

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• foodude Posts: 3,577 ✭✭✭

  October 26, 2003 9:32AM

  Mercury is not a material that you want to handle, ingested, or breath (vapors). If the coin deos have mercury on it, it should be placed in a sealed container, and well out of the reach of children.

  Greg Allen Coins, LLC Show Schedule: https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/573044/our-show-schedule-updated-10-2-16 Authorized dealer for NGC, PCGS, CAC, and QA. Member of PNG, RTT (Founding Platinum Member), FUN, MSNS, and NCBA (formerly ICTA); Life Member of ANA and CSNS. NCBA Board member. "GA3" on CCE.

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• FullHorn Posts: 1,145 ✭✭✭✭✭

  October 26, 2003 12:10PM

  I got this one out of a junk box at at show and took a magnet to it and it has a slight pull but nothing compared to a 1943 cent so
  Im guessing its just coated with steel?
  
  and it looks like copper peeking through the shoulder area.

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• Shamika Posts: 18,785 ✭✭✭✭

  October 26, 2003 12:27PM

  It's most likely nickel coated. This is a very old and very common experiment done in general chemistry lab classes demonstrating a reduction reaction.

  Buyer and seller of vintage coin boards!

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• Cam40 Posts: 8,146 ✭

  October 26, 2003 12:35PM

  i got a 1945 wheatie like that from a roll.
  
  i think those are mercury dipped......bad news.
  
  someone must have wondered if the coin was `silver` through and through so they put a nice deep scratch
  in the obverse field to check.
  
  

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• GaCoinGuy Posts: 2,778 ✭✭✭✭

  October 26, 2003 2:10PM

  I have one from the 50s as well...very slighty magnetic with 2 copper spots showing on opposite sides of the rims.

  
  
  

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