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Ever see 151 year old gold coin "rust?"

HalfsenseHalfsense Posts: 600 ✭✭✭
in U.S. Coin Forum
It's not really "rust," but ocean sediment and assorted chemicals that settled over some coins that went down with the famous S.S. Central America in 1857 actually formed a protective covering. Bob Evans, the recovery mission's chief scientist and historian (and one of the really good guys of numismatics), was able to carefully lift off the sediment to reveal otherwise pristine surfaces on many of those coins.

At the February Long Beach Expo, Bob had examples of "coin rust" from some 1857 Double Eagles that were part of the Central America's recovered sunken treasure. Here's a close up photo of what 151 year old "coin rust" looks like. It has a reverse image of the coin's obverse.

1857 "Coin Rust" close up photo

-donn-

"If it happens in numismatics, it's news to me....

Comments

  • guitarwesguitarwes Posts: 9,308 ✭✭✭

    That's a pretty cool item.

    Talk about "skin"...........
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  • fcfc Posts: 12,804 ✭✭✭
    very cool, but i think the term rust is misleading.
    the better term might be, "a coating of crap". ;-)
  • PerryHallPerryHall Posts: 47,500 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>That's a pretty cool item.

    Talk about "skin"........... >>



    Don't you mean talk about"crusty"?

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  • duck620duck620 Posts: 1,084 ✭✭✭✭
    image
  • Steve27Steve27 Posts: 13,277 ✭✭✭
    Toning is rust; that's not toning or close to it.
    "It's far easier to fight for principles, than to live up to them." Adlai Stevenson
  • CoxeCoxe Posts: 11,139 ✭
    Though not technically rust at all, it is still a very cool item. Thanks for sharing, Donn.
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  • IGWTIGWT Posts: 4,975 ✭
    A coin fossil! image Edited to add: Donn -- Does that piece include some sort of resin that was used to coat the coin and then peeled away to remove residue from the coin?

    image
  • karpman9karpman9 Posts: 310 ✭✭
    Very cool indeed!
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  • bigmansam88bigmansam88 Posts: 1,209
    Very cool find.
  • partagaspartagas Posts: 2,056 ✭✭✭
    Wow that is cool. Finnally something I like about a shipwreck coin.
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  • jdillanejdillane Posts: 2,366 ✭✭✭
    Ditto the cool find comments.
  • BECOKABECOKA Posts: 16,961 ✭✭✭
    Almost looks like glass or plastic now.

    That is pretty neat. I would imagine the the copper component of the gold coin could corrode pretty badly if it was an improper mixture.
  • tightbudgettightbudget Posts: 7,299 ✭✭✭
    image
  • TomBTomB Posts: 22,946 ✭✭✭✭✭
    It certainly isn't rust, but it's also certainly as cool as all get-out!
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    image
  • dcarrdcarr Posts: 10,039 ✭✭✭✭✭
    It could be a mixture of things including deposits of iron oxide (rust) that came from another source (like parts of a sunken ship).
    Moonlight Mint
  • HalfsenseHalfsense Posts: 600 ✭✭✭
    For you chemists out there, please notice that I deliberately put the word "rust" in quotes to indicate that the material is not what you usually consider iron oxide. Bob Evans is the one who jokingly referred to it as "gold coin rust" when he showed me the pieces. I've alerted him to this thread, and perhaps he'll provide additional information about the composition of the stuff.

    -donn-



    "If it happens in numismatics, it's news to me....

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