Verdigris on Cartwheel Twopence

[StGeorge]

My first cartwheel twopence arrived today (I didn't realise they were that heavy!) and it has some bad verdigris on it.

Would you attempt to remove it or leave well alone? I'm just worried that it may be active and maybe get worse.

Thanks for any advice.

[£400 for a Penny ?]

Hello Ian,

Well,

Verdigris is often called 'Bronze Disease' it will get worse, it certainly is active.

It's also contagious, so don't keep it anywhere near any other bronze.

Can you cure it - well, Lazarus made a comeback from a similar position, but it's a bad case.

Immerse it in an inch of olive oil, leave it in the shed for a year, maybe two and then see what you've got.

Where did you get it ?

[azda]

Ouch, that looks sore. Did'nt you see a picture when you bought this? Personally i would'nt have bought it with such heavy Verd being honest

[StGeorge]

I did see a picture but I'm new to coin collecting and didn't realise verdigris was that nasty. I also collect antique swords and if you get a bit of red rust it is a relatively simple process to render it inactive, I thought verdigris would be similar.

Never mind, I'll live and (hopefully!) learn

I guess I'll consign it to the olive oil for a while and see if I can find one without the extra bits...

Thanks for the advice.

[£400 for a Penny ?]

I did see a picture but I'm new to coin collecting and didn't realise verdigris was that nasty. I also collect antique swords and if you get a bit of red rust it is a relatively simple process to render it inactive, I thought verdigris would be similar.

Never mind, I'll live and (hopefully!) learn

I guess I'll consign it to the olive oil for a while and see if I can find one without the extra bits...

Thanks for the advice.

Please don't be discouraged, it takes a while to get one's head around the fact that condition is everything when it comes to coins.

You're in the right place - I once had 30+ pattern 1888 bayonets, stick around and let us know your next move ?

[Peckris]

I did see a picture but I'm new to coin collecting and didn't realise verdigris was that nasty. I also collect antique swords and if you get a bit of red rust it is a relatively simple process to render it inactive, I thought verdigris would be similar.

Never mind, I'll live and (hopefully!) learn

I guess I'll consign it to the olive oil for a while and see if I can find one without the extra bits...

Thanks for the advice.

There's a quicker way than olive oil for verdigris, but it will make the coin paler (not polished-looking, just paler) : immerse overnight in a good quality vinegar (yes yes, I know it's a weak acid, but believe me I wouldn't suggest it if I hadn't tried it myself) then remove and wash off thoroughly. What is most likely to happen is that the coin has gone a paler brown, with the verdigris as darker patches but no longer green.

You may not want to risk it, but that's your call. If it was a higher grade cartwheel I'd say "don't", but that one's rather 'edgy'.

[StGeorge]

I did see a picture but I'm new to coin collecting and didn't realise verdigris was that nasty. I also collect antique swords and if you get a bit of red rust it is a relatively simple process to render it inactive, I thought verdigris would be similar.

Never mind, I'll live and (hopefully!) learn

I guess I'll consign it to the olive oil for a while and see if I can find one without the extra bits...

Thanks for the advice.

There's a quicker way than olive oil for verdigris, but it will make the coin paler (not polished-looking, just paler) : immerse overnight in a good quality vinegar (yes yes, I know it's a weak acid, but believe me I wouldn't suggest it if I hadn't tried it myself) then remove and wash off thoroughly. What is most likely to happen is that the coin has gone a paler brown, with the verdigris as darker patches but no longer green.

You may not want to risk it, but that's your call. If it was a higher grade cartwheel I'd say "don't", but that one's rather 'edgy'.

Thanks for that, I'll give it a go. It's not as if I paid a fortune for it.

@400, I'm starting to get the whole condition thing. With swords, you expect a few edge knocks, bent guards, patina and pitting etc. Coins seem to be a totally different kettle of fish with only the very highest quality commanding the best prices. Oh well, I've got my foot on the learning curve ladder

[Peckris]

I did see a picture but I'm new to coin collecting and didn't realise verdigris was that nasty. I also collect antique swords and if you get a bit of red rust it is a relatively simple process to render it inactive, I thought verdigris would be similar.

Never mind, I'll live and (hopefully!) learn

I guess I'll consign it to the olive oil for a while and see if I can find one without the extra bits...

Thanks for the advice.

There's a quicker way than olive oil for verdigris, but it will make the coin paler (not polished-looking, just paler) : immerse overnight in a good quality vinegar (yes yes, I know it's a weak acid, but believe me I wouldn't suggest it if I hadn't tried it myself) then remove and wash off thoroughly. What is most likely to happen is that the coin has gone a paler brown, with the verdigris as darker patches but no longer green.

You may not want to risk it, but that's your call. If it was a higher grade cartwheel I'd say "don't", but that one's rather 'edgy'.

Thanks for that, I'll give it a go. It's not as if I paid a fortune for it.

@400, I'm starting to get the whole condition thing. With swords, you expect a few edge knocks, bent guards, patina and pitting etc. Coins seem to be a totally different kettle of fish with only the very highest quality commanding the best prices. Oh well, I've got my foot on the learning curve ladder

There's a great aid for you, if you're serious : Predecimal (whose forum this is) publish the Grading Guide to British Coins, fully ilustrated with each major obverse and reverse type since 1797, in 4 grades. It really would be a boon for you, as you would have a picture reference to all the main grades of condition. (There's an advert to click at the top of each forum - the row of books** - and apparently I'm not on commission )

**having said that, I don't see that advert anymore ... if you click on the website address or the logo (above) you'll get to the home page and you should find it from there ok

Edited August 20, 2010 by Peckris

[StGeorge]

I did see a picture but I'm new to coin collecting and didn't realise verdigris was that nasty. I also collect antique swords and if you get a bit of red rust it is a relatively simple process to render it inactive, I thought verdigris would be similar.

Never mind, I'll live and (hopefully!) learn

I guess I'll consign it to the olive oil for a while and see if I can find one without the extra bits...

Thanks for the advice.

There's a quicker way than olive oil for verdigris, but it will make the coin paler (not polished-looking, just paler) : immerse overnight in a good quality vinegar (yes yes, I know it's a weak acid, but believe me I wouldn't suggest it if I hadn't tried it myself) then remove and wash off thoroughly. What is most likely to happen is that the coin has gone a paler brown, with the verdigris as darker patches but no longer green.

You may not want to risk it, but that's your call. If it was a higher grade cartwheel I'd say "don't", but that one's rather 'edgy'.

Thanks for that, I'll give it a go. It's not as if I paid a fortune for it.

@400, I'm starting to get the whole condition thing. With swords, you expect a few edge knocks, bent guards, patina and pitting etc. Coins seem to be a totally different kettle of fish with only the very highest quality commanding the best prices. Oh well, I've got my foot on the learning curve ladder

There's a great aid for you, if you're serious : Predecimal (whose forum this is) publish the Grading Guide to British Coins, fully ilustrated with each major obverse and reverse type since 1797, in 4 grades. It really would be a boon for you, as you would have a picture reference to all the main grades of condition. (There's an advert to click at the top of each forum - the row of books** - and apparently I'm not on commission )

**having said that, I don't see that advert anymore ... if you click on the website address or the logo (above) you'll get to the home page and you should find it from there ok

Thanks, I've got that book as well as Spink and the download version of Collectors' Coins GB. I've also found the Tony Clayton website, is the coin valuation section kept up-to-date or is it best to use Spink for assessing values?

The vinegar trick worked a treat - it lifted all of the green in a few hours and has just left a darker staining as you said. Thanks for the tip!

[Peckris]

I did see a picture but I'm new to coin collecting and didn't realise verdigris was that nasty. I also collect antique swords and if you get a bit of red rust it is a relatively simple process to render it inactive, I thought verdigris would be similar.

Never mind, I'll live and (hopefully!) learn

I guess I'll consign it to the olive oil for a while and see if I can find one without the extra bits...

Thanks for the advice.

There's a quicker way than olive oil for verdigris, but it will make the coin paler (not polished-looking, just paler) : immerse overnight in a good quality vinegar (yes yes, I know it's a weak acid, but believe me I wouldn't suggest it if I hadn't tried it myself) then remove and wash off thoroughly. What is most likely to happen is that the coin has gone a paler brown, with the verdigris as darker patches but no longer green.

You may not want to risk it, but that's your call. If it was a higher grade cartwheel I'd say "don't", but that one's rather 'edgy'.

Thanks for that, I'll give it a go. It's not as if I paid a fortune for it.

@400, I'm starting to get the whole condition thing. With swords, you expect a few edge knocks, bent guards, patina and pitting etc. Coins seem to be a totally different kettle of fish with only the very highest quality commanding the best prices. Oh well, I've got my foot on the learning curve ladder

There's a great aid for you, if you're serious : Predecimal (whose forum this is) publish the Grading Guide to British Coins, fully ilustrated with each major obverse and reverse type since 1797, in 4 grades. It really would be a boon for you, as you would have a picture reference to all the main grades of condition. (There's an advert to click at the top of each forum - the row of books** - and apparently I'm not on commission )

**having said that, I don't see that advert anymore ... if you click on the website address or the logo (above) you'll get to the home page and you should find it from there ok

Thanks, I've got that book as well as Spink and the download version of Collectors' Coins GB. I've also found the Tony Clayton website, is the coin valuation section kept up-to-date or is it best to use Spink for assessing values?

The vinegar trick worked a treat - it lifted all of the green in a few hours and has just left a darker staining as you said. Thanks for the tip!

You're very welcome!

I would use Spink for up-to-date values, bearing in mind that coin valuations are something of a dark art. If you don't fancy laying out £25 for a copy, take a tip from this penny-pincher : your nearest decent library should have a copy in their Reference section. I've spent many a happy hour annually, transcribing values