You can find GREAT COLOR coins even while being evacuated

[physics-fan3.14]

So I'm in Houston for a couple of days, for a nice vacation courtesy of my friend Gustav. I'll probably be heading back to see what sort of devastation awaits me in Lafayette on Thursday. I want to give the power company every chance to get the power back on, and I want to make sure the gas stations have some juice too. Well, so I'm cruising around town and I visit "The Gold Exchange" on the north side of H-town, just to see what they've got. There were a few people in and out, and a few common things, mostly bullion stuff, in their cases.

 

Tucked away back in the back I saw a put together mint set, in one of those little cases. It's a 1960, and I can see that the silver is toned, so I ask to see it closer. When I get it in my hand, I can see that all three of the silver pieces are attractively toned, and I remember that post-1958 coins are hard to get in good color, so I set it aside. The dime reminds me quite a bit of your 1960 half, Sy, so it intrigued me.

 

Then I ask the lady if they have any capped bust halves back in the back. The lady has no idea what I'm talking about. She must have been the owners wife or something, or maybe she only deals with the jewelry side of things. Anyways, I point down at a very worn, cleaned capped bust quarter they have in the case and I say "I want the ones that look like that, but half dollars," and she sort of knows what I'm talking about. She brought out a box of coins halves that were quite a mixed lot - there were some choice circulated original looking coins, some heavily worn coins, and quite a few harshly cleaned coins. But in the middle of them all is this 1819 with great album toning, and the price was right, so I had to get it.

 

I paid $100 for the half, and $35 for the mint set. Tell me what you think, with grade opinions and O# appreciated.

[physics-fan3.14]

Apparently we're only allowed to add 5 files at a time, so here's the rest of the pics.

[jgrinz]

Thief

 

 

[EZ_E]

I'm not necessarily a CBH fan but I love yours......and for only a hunded bucks! You scored, brother!

 

So, did you get your sister to man your station while you bailed out of the gulf? Come on...be a man!

 

[kryptonitecomics]

I think you overpaid a bit for the Mint set and ripped them off on the CBH

[harvey8542]

Wow love the CBH

[physics-fan3.14]

I'm glad ya'll like the bustie. I'm thinking EF-40 O-114 on it, what do you guys think?

[jackson64]

very close to a you suck award--nice Bustie

[TomB]

The CBH has the classic toning pattern of artificially toned coins produced with liver of sulfur. This has been done for decades and many CBHs have been treated. It is almost a certainty that this coin would bag if sent in for certification.

[RGT]

I was thinking along the same lines as Tom on this one. I am not familiar with liver of sulfer but I have seen similar toning from taking a dipped coin and wraping it in tissue (or Taco Bell napkins). Setting it on a window sill will speed the process. I have noticed that almost any time you see that blue color on the rims of a circulated coin it means the color is secondary after an old cleaning. That may be just a rule of thumb but it usually proves out.

 

Still, it's a relatively attractive coin and would work in an album.

[SkyMan]

I was wondering about the toning on the CBH. For $100 I certainly wouldn't worry about it, as it is an attractive coin.

 

I think you did quite nicely with the 1960 set. The Roosie is what intrigues me. P mint, so comparable to the halves with that pattern. I've never seen it on a 1960 dime before, but truthfully I never paid them too much attention before this year. I think keeping the set raw in it's holder is the way to go.

 

 

[PCcoins]

I agree that when I first seen the Bust Half I was thinking AT. But the coin itself is nice for the paid price! And nice mint set too.

[zrlevin]

I agree that the half is AT.

[okbustchaser]

The bust half is probably AT. At that price, who cares? If you wanna make a little profit PM me.

 

Jim

[Glossy]

Many AT coins on ebay with the same toning pattern as the half, but I'm not saying yours is AT. Yours might be the real thing the doctors are trying to copy. As for the Roosevelt... WOW!!!

[physics-fan3.14]

After talking it over with TomB, I am somewhat convinced that there is a high probability that the bustie might be AT. He provided a great deal of clarification and information, which he has graciously given me permission to repost here. I had never heard of liver of sulfide, so I feel that this information might be useful to others of you encountering similar situations. Thanks guys!

 

Obviously, I cannot prove that your new coin has been subjected to liver of sulfur; but if the images are at all accurate then I would not hesitate to label it as such in my mind.

 

Liver of sulfur is sort of a generic name for a mixture of potassium sulfide and potassium salts. It has been used for decades in the jewelry and antique industries to produce a false patina on product in order to simulate age or to produce an array of colors that typically favor rich chestnut, violet, blue and colors in this range tinged with red. Production of color can be a stepwise system where a coin is repeatedly treated until the depth of color and hue that is desirable is reached. The colors can also be tweaked a bit by making the solution a bit more basic.

 

When I first re-entered the coin field and made an entry into raw, classic coinage I was surprised at how many very similar CBHs to yours I had noticed on the bourse. Over time I purchased a number of these and always thought I was finding an undisturbed treasure. However, one day a longtime dealer told me I was buying manipulated coinage and told me about liver of sulfur. Over the course of perhaps two years I submitted the small group of CBHs that I had obtained to PCGS and NGC and in every instance the coins were bagged as AT. This was not a new technique and they were aware of the look.

 

There are a fair number of raw CBHs out there that look like this, but there has really never been a commercially successful album for raw CBHs because these coins come with various diameters. Therefore, it would be tough to find so many identically toned coins coming from albums that never fit the coins well in the first place. The look that is common is for a coin with blue near the rims that is a bit too clean of other colors aside from a tinge of violet. Also, the auburn or chestnut throughout the coin is generally too uniform as it flows over the devices or portrait into the fields. The best way to spot this manipulation is to simply be suspicious of all CBHs with this color scheme, which is almost always produced artificially. I hope this helped.

 

Tom

[BECOKA]

AT or not for the price that would make a great album type set coin.