Germanicus has bronze disease

So my Germanicus As has bronze disease I think. Green splotches and a white powder accumulating in the coin flip. I don't think his as is worth saving, it only cost $30 but I'll need a new Germanicus?

Have we experienced this before? Is it curable? Can other coins catch it? Any disaster stories?

 

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I've had a handful of coins with bronze disease, either arriving with it or developing it. The first, before I knew what BD was, quickly became unsalvageable. Fortunately it was a prutah of little value. Of the coins I've treated, so far recurrence has only happened in one. I probably didn't soak it long enough or with enough changes of solution. The [homemade and approximated] sodium sesquicarbonate method is what I use. It does change the patina and color of the coin-- the coin will be darker.

Some articles on treatment:

http://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/view.asp?key=Bronze Disease

http://www.collector-antiquities.co...estoring-and-conservation/bronze-disease.html

http://www.romanorum.com/docs/A Method for cleaning ancient coins. Romanorum.com.pdf A thorough presentation on cleaning. Scroll to page 20 to see information about treating BD.

 

Can we have a look at the patient?

 

If you promise not to mock my photography My camera isn't working so all I have is my mobile phone.. and it's a bit dark here in Australia, being night and all:



Yes, it's not a great coin anyway. I'm waiting for John to auction a nice Germanicus in his regular auctions.

 

Thanks TIF. I think this is a good coin to practise on. If i totally ruin it, it will be no big loss. But someday a coin I really like might get sick

 

Definitely a good idea to get some practice in. Should you ever see it developing on a prized coin, you need to know what to do. Have you ordered some verdi-care?

 

This subject always gives me the creeps. The links that TIF provided are very helpful. The part I do not understand is the "contagious" aspect. If the coins are separated by flips or placement in a separate tray slot, how does this "disease" spread?

 

Think of the dust as "spores".....

 

That makes it even more creepy! So if I have a few "suspects" isolating them in an air tight jar should keep it from spreading?

 

Don't use tools, picks brushes etc on a coin with BD and then a good coin. Any flips that have contained a coin with BD should be destroyed. Airtight contains should keep them confined.

 

Thank you!

 

I am a believer! the top photo was taken in November of 2014, the bottom was taken today. Notice the development in the upper right section.

I AM INFECTED!!

 

Random observation: I have about 350 ancient coins and about half of these are Roman and the other, Greek. Of the 350 coins I have suspicions about 6 coins. All 6 of the suspects are Roman coins. This is just random, right?

 

Pretty much. Any bronze coin is susceptible. Get yourself some Verdi-Care.

 

I've learned that the best defense against bronze disease is to avoid coins that have problems with the patina, particularly coins where you can see the bare bronze. It would seem that these coins ALWAYS start having problems.

But I've also had some coins with bright green deposits that never spread, so not all green is bad - frequently it's just mineral.

Greg, I'm going to the Baltimore Show next week - I'll see what I can find for Germanicus and report back.

 

VerdiCare isn't going to hurt your coins, and it just might help.

 

I'd never head of VerdiCare before. I googled it and came up with vague descriptions and explanations. "proprietary' this and that. Dont know what it is really or how it reacts. Maybe perfectly safe but in my 30+ years I have never heard of it. But then, I dont typically clean coins. Although some will say one should never clean by any mechanical methods, with bronze disease it has to be removed physically. With Greg's coin I think it could easily be saved. Use water and a wooden toothpick. Dig out the areas of issue. When you get to bare metal (as far as you can see) wash again with water. Dry it out thoroughly (some will place into an oven at low heat, I suppose direct sunlight will suffice). When you think you are done, go again. After your final treatment, let the coin sit for at least six months to see if it comes back. After a year or more if it doesnt come back one can treat with sealants, such as Renaissance Wax or Dellers Darkener. Using the above methods, I have never seen it come back.

 

I use Verdi-Care sometimes. Helps a lot on modern coins, but with ancients, didn't help too much with Potin Tets.

 

VerdiCare has been around for a few years. The originator @BadThad is a CoinTalk member and several people here have used his product. @Insider was a little dismissive of it, but many seem to have no problem with it, considering the alternatives.

 

Thanks John. A reasonably priced Germanicus (~$100) would be awesome Drusus and Antonia too (same ballpark price).