I have an 1997 China 10 Yuan silver Panda coin that is colored. The coin has fingerprint marks and is dusty. I would like to remove these things and make the coin's appearance as nice as possible before I put it into a new capsule for long term storage. The only time I have ever removed organic material from a coin was soaking a Morgan in acetone. I have never tried to remove fingerprints etc from a proof coin (or any coin for that matter). I do not know how to go about it. In addition I am worried about damaging the coloring. I don't know how the coloring is applied or exactly what is used. I have spent hours on the internet trying to find an answer and have found nothing. Zero, zip, zilch. Please help. I am all ears.
Acetone is the only thing I know that will safely remove fingerprints, but I am pretty sure it would dissolve the coloring just the same.
If acetone takes the toning off it shouldn't have been there in the first place, it was AT'd . But yeah, acetone is the only thing that I'd try.
Let's make sure exactly what you mean by "colored". Do you mean the coin is toned, or do you mean the coin is painted ? If it is toned then acetone will not remove the toning, assuming it is actually toning and not the result of somebody putting a liquid chemical on the coin. And acetone will not remove fingerprints from a coin if the fingerprints are more than a few days old. Acetone will only remove fresh fingerprints. However, the thing that will remove old fingerprints, and toning, is a commercial coin dip. Commercial coin dips contain an acid and the acid is what does the work. But it is very easy to ruin a coin, completely strip all the luster from it, with a commercial coin dip. So only those who have experience with dipping coins should use them. If the coin is painted, in most cases they are painted with acrylic paints, and sometimes enamel. Removing it could take a long time, but xylene should do it. I doubt acetone will though because acetone just doesn't work that well on acrylics and better enamels. Honestly, your best bet is to just leave the coin alone and sell the coin. Then buy another one that you are happy with as it is when you buy it.
The China Mint shipped the coin to a company named PAMP in Switzerland to be "colored". So this has nothing to do with toning. PAMP then utlizes "proprieritary techniques of colorization for prescision color application". PAMP's website http://www.pamp.ch/services/customminting/production Note- Colorizing is part of the original design intention of my coin. Doing research I have uncovered three different types, or techniques, of colorization: (a) Coins in which the colorized design has been applied via a decal or sticker which is glued or fused to the coin; (b) Coins which are painted with enamel or acrylic-based paints; and (c) Coins which are a hybrid of the two, in which a polymer-based inked decal is fused to the coin using high heat, which results in a coin that looks both painted and stickered. Since PAMP doesn't describe its process and my Panda is in a capsule currently I do not know exactly what process was used. And, yes, I want to remove the fingerprints not the paint/decal/whatever. This "colorizing" of coins is gaining in popularity on a world level with many governments issuing silver and gold investment grade coinage that is "colorized". Visit the Royal Canadian Mint site to see many, many examples. Link- http://www.mint.ca/store/buy/coloured_coins-cat200032 The process seems to have been used on medals and commemoratives quite a bit as well. I have been researching this topic all day. My coin has numismatic value and I want to preserve it correctly. Even if preserving it correctly means not doing a damn thing. But I am flabbergasted that I can't find anything online about how to preserve or clean a "colorized" silver coin. Thanks for all the help guys I appreciate it.
I have been researching this topic all day. My coin has numismatic value and I want to preserve it correctly. Even if preserving it correctly means not doing a damn thing. But I am flabbergasted that I can't find anything online about how to preserve or clean a "colorized" silver coin. [/quote] Sorry, can't be done. Doing nothing is your only choice with that coin. You see, the body oil that causes fingerprints is acidic. And once the fingerprint has been on the coin for a while the acidic oils actually etch the print down into the metal itself, just as any acid would. And once that happens the only way to remove fingerprints from a coin is to remove the top layer of the metal itself thus taking the fingerprint with it. That's what using a commercial coin dip (acid) does, it strips away the top layer of metal. Which is why the process will remove toning. But you have a two pronged problem - a fingerprint and applied coloring. So there is no way to remove one without removing the other as well. But you still have a solution, which I mentioned earlier. Sell or trade the coin and get one you like.
Lat question. I have an 1999 silver Panda that has mirrored surfaces, frosting and reflective surfaces. It has dust flects on it. I want to remove these before I reseal in a new capsule for long term storage. Should I gently wipe it of with a cotton cloth, blow air on it or just leave it alone?
And now for the life of me I can't get the darn 1997 out of its holder. The top of the capsule is easy to remove but the coin is not budging from the bottom part.
Panda project complete. Above are the end results. Thanks again for all the valuable input from the community.
Never, ever, wipe a coin with anything ! You should never even touch a coin except on the edges. To get dust off a coin yes you can use canned air, but you must do so carefully, making sure to hold the can completely upright. Otherwise some of the propellants can squirt out and get on the coin, and that's not good for the coin. You can also just blow it off with your mouth, but again carefully. For if any saliva droplets, even ones you can't see come out and get on the coin, the coin will develop spots later on. Probably the safest way to remove dust, especially from a Proof is to rinse the coin in distilled water, NOT tap water. Then stand the coin on edge on a soft towel, lean it up against the back splash on your counter top and let it air dry overnight.
