Good Morning! I certainly did not polish this coin, but does it look like someone else did?? I think it's just an alloy mix error (aka Woody) but...? Thanks.
I do not think that is a woodie, or badly mixed alloy, but more that something lay across the coin for years, exposing only part of the surface to the elements.
I did clean it myself, with acetone, after I found it. Didn't change the color, as far as I could see.
It looks like it could be "tab toning" to me. Decades ago, many banking institutions used to give away albums to encourage kids to save their change. One form of album had a paper tab across the center of the slot to keep the coin from falling out.
Not a woodie..... I rather think somebody placed a piece of scotch tape over the coin to hold it in a coin folder. Some of those old Whitman's were notorious for allowing coins to fall out of the slot.
Yeah, you can see a bit of grain now-- it runs sort of North-South. The bright stripe goes the other way. So I guess some sort of interference, like y'all are saying.
Agree with CN above - the first obv. photo showed a 'maybe' improper metal mixture', but the 2nd obv. photo shows its just tape.
I see what you are referring to and while it does have a slight appearance of a woodie, I don't believe it is. What could it be? I'm not sure what caused those marks/variations in the coin, but still don't believe it to be a true woodie. Just my opinion.