1902 Barber half marred by Whitman folder sheet

I have been working to transfer my coins from old blue Whitman folders into Dansco albums and have this nice (at least it was) '02 Barber half that has been marred by the last page that covers the 3rd fold when closed. You can see the lettering on forehead (marks:), cheek (San Francisco;) and jaw (mint) that transferred. Since I got the folders from my father (this one came from his mother) they have been in a plastic bag and never exposed to any moisture; have been in Colorado since the '60s so humidity was never an issue. Obviously at some time that page got wet (had to be before 1960) and even though it has been completely dry for decades the print transferred. I put this coin in there in the late '90s, never even thought about this happening. For some reason none of the other coins were affected at all.

I never clean coins and believe if I did to remove the black gunk it would reveal fresh metal and make it look worse than it does, but if anyone knows of a good way to restore this, I would appreciate it. I'm not very optimistic and do not plan on experimenting so only will try something proven. Thanks, Kevin.

 

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I know there are ways, but I personally I would leave it alone. The reverse is great and with the exception of the environmental issue on the obverse it is nice also. Very nice coin thanks for sharing, good luck with your decision!

 

I collect them as long as the coin is an honest coin, no cleaning etc.
It is called Whittman letter transfer.
I have a few of them.
This Morgan is the most dramatic I have seen.

 

I've never seen anything like that. Cool! I'll bet it would sell for a huge premium.

 

Is that Black spot toning? Maybe an old dip, or is it gunk?

 

Wow, that is one nice AU Barber half! Might well be worth sending to Skip at ICG for conservation.

Even in a dry environment, most paper very slowly emits sulfur compounds. The ink on the page actually impedes that transfer, apparently, and as a result the letters show up as a negative image of untoned areas.

I agree that some people pay a premium for the letter-transfer toning, but the black spots are an impairment. It looks like terminal toning rather than gunk in this photo, but it would still be worthwhile to try an acetone or distilled-water soak -- it couldn't hurt anything.

 

The black stuff appears to be removable; in hand it doesn't look like terminal tarnish but something on the surface of the coin.

LM, not a secret code (although that would be super cool) but the red letters are what is visible on the coin from the transfer. You can see in the photo of the folder the page and where it would have come in contact with the coin.

P&G and Jeff, thanks for the info on how it actually happens and that there are others out there - and it actually has a name - "Whitman letter transfer". Never would have thought.

I appreciate all of the responses; I think I may try the acetone dip but have never done it before. I have a photo from when I first photographed the coins about 15 years ago, and it looks like the black is spreading a little.

 

I would try an Acetone soak. you could use a qtip and roll the area in question, no rubbing. If that doesn't work then I would suggest what Jeff said and have Skip/Insider conserve the coin.

 

I started out with the Whitman coin folders, but quickly moved on to the "Liberty of Coins" albums when I was in junior high school. The only Whitman album that was left was the one for my 1941 to date Lincoln cents, which were not valuable. I guess I may have dodged a bullet.

I kept my best coins in Capital Plastic holders and envelopes

 

I had a bit of that black gunk on a couple of 1964 Kennedy halves, I soaked them an entire week in acetone and didn't even faze the black junk. I have no idea, maybe TPG can remove it since it might be very valuable.

 

They hold a small premium to the right collector. I wouldn't say very valuable. I have a couple of Barber quarters like this. an 04O and an 04. I don't think that I paid up for those.

 

Barber halves in anything over VF are steep, even for common dates. That 1902-P would be a $200 coin in XF, and if this one can be conserved successfully, I think it's higher than XF.

 

I wasn't kicking the coin, I definitely agree, I was only saying that the Whitman letter transfer probably won't add too much of value.

 

I appreciate the enthusiasm guys, gracias. I plan to buy some of that full strength acetone and see if it does anything. Since I don't ever slab coins, I doubt I would send to anyone for conservation, perhaps I could learn a little on that and someday do it myself.

 

Acetone will not harm the coin at all. The black stuff, if terminal, will not be removed or touched by the solution. It will remain stationed on the coin. On the other hand, if it's some kind of organic, otherworld gunk it could be gone in a lengthy soak. Give it a go.....

 

I remember from many years ago a Whitman competitor, called “Shoreline,” which put a slick, plastic colored page where the offending Whitman paper page was. I thought it was odd at the time, but there really was an issue.

 

Just over $10/quart Walmart, Home Depot A few dollars more at a local hardware store. Use a well worn quarter to open it in a well ventilated area. Can be flammable so no smoking. Pour carefully into a glass container with a lid so it doesn’t evaporate in minutes.

 

I was once advised by a PHD coin dealer I was sitting with during a cleaning coins segment at a show, that using a toothpick on black gunk would not damage the coin. I tried it and it actually works, go figure! Good luck.

 

If the black gunk's just tar, probably fine. If the black gunk has fine dirt or sand embedded in it... pushing grit around on a coin can damage it, whether you do the pushing with a toothpick, or a fingertip, or even canned air. (Think about how sandblasting is done!)