It means that I've seen this type of toning before......be it from a manila flip. Glad you liked the video. Something from my youth.......
Improper color progressions, colors that creep over relief changes, unusual color scheme for a walker, raw, and low grade. That coin is almost certainly AT.
gbroke educated me on this type toning. A.T. artificial toning for sure. electronically done. not sure how but I have 1 merc dime that looks very similar to yours. luckily it was a $38 dollar mistake/learning experience.
To clarify Paul's input for new members, this coin is circulated. Its much harder for a circulated coin to have such toning because its mint luster, (the new surface that usually tones), is mostly gone. Also, if this was from a manila envelope, the edges and highpoints of the coin would have the darkest toning, with the lightest in recessed areas. This is not the case with this coin. This coin appears to have been shocked with electricity to promote toning, and the recesses, (which still had mint luster), toned most dark, with the higher points, (without mint luster), being forced into toning. At least that is how I see it, but please correct me if I am wrong Paul.
Thank you medoraman. I don't seek out the rainbow coins, so it was nice to understand the process a little better.
Great explanation. If you were to examine this coin in hand, I bet you could find the two small round telltale signs it was electrocuted.
Any picture thru a holder is useless. It isn't that much work to take it out, esp that type of holder.
My first impression is fake. As someone mentioned, other clues are that it's raw, probably a common date, circulated, etc. After viewing a lot of coins, it seems to me that genuine ones have a more natural, deeply ingrained look of toning. That toning looks rushed, superficial, and so on.
Old manila envelope paper had sulfur in them that would tone coins if placed inside. Not sure if modern manila envelopes are the same.