Why is this nickel this color

Is this a valuable 2004 P nickel, this seems like a error or something how the coin was made

 

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Environmental damage. Possibly spent some time in the dirt.
Not an error.

 

But isn’t there coins like this that they say are errors or worth money

 

No!

Mr. P. aka @paddyman98 can show you bunches of his metal-detected coins that look like that.

 

Yea, but not this one man , sorry .

 

You've been given the old bum steer as they call it if you think that's a mint error worth money.

 

Welcome to coin talk. What you have is a nickel with environmental damage worth 5 cents.

 

That color is standard for a coin that spent time in the ground. It's known as ED or environmental damage.

 

Welcome to Coin Talk! Thanks for sharing this coin! The posters above are right. It's environmental damage. Maybe you think you have an experimental planchet error? I'm not sure but a lot of advice you'll get on here is to read before you hunt for coins and errors. Buy the book. Learn how the minting process works and just plain use google and the great knoweledge here if you're not sure. We love to interact here and are more than happy to help guide you on your way but learn and understand the minting process and you'll be on your way to a great start in the hobby!

 

N
A Nickel is made of Cupro-Nickel. The Copper tones when exposed to a harsh environment such as soil, dirt, sand, and water.
Here are metal detected Nickels I have found..


Also affects clad coins made of Cupro-Nickel..

 

Good answer! You nailed it