I bought a 2000 silver proof set off eBay and a couple of the quarters have some whitish appearance on them . I've attached pictures of the coins in question. On the Maryland coin, there is a small white spot below the E in "LINE" and to the left of the building. On the NH coin, there is a white ring all around the coin. It's thicker on the left and thinner on the right. Has anyone seen anything like this before? Any idea what it is? Should I return these coins or what? Thanks.
that is hazing, the bane of proof coins... besides fingerprints if the seller will let you return them I would.
Thanks for the quick reply. I think he probably would allow a return. There was also some (ugly IMO) toning on the dime. These were listed as "perfect" or something and the seller seems agreeable, so I'll try to push in that direction.
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe the white spots are from where the mint washed the planchets, and didn't rinse them correctly.
Zane is right---and the year 2000 is when they did this so alot of the proof sets have this problem. If you can return it go for it----but I know that after looking through a stack of 2000 PF Sets I wasn't about the sell the good one I found Speedy
Yes that is correct, but that is not what is on these coins. As was said, this is haze - not milk spots ( another name for the whitish spots you mentioned ) like those so commonly found on ASE's. Haze appears on Proof coins from just about any date. It is believed that both haze and milk spots have the same cause. But milk spots are not found only on Proofs - haze almost always is.
I have found this problem to be most prevalent on "brown Ikes".Virtually every one I have has this haze on them.
Heres a link to a good pic of milk spots http://www.auctiva.com/hostedimages/showimage.aspx?gid=212234&ppid=1122&image=19785563&images=19785563,19785699&formats=0,0&format=0
Milk spots or no, that's still a pretty coin. Milk spots have never been a distraction for me. It may have been unintentional on the Mint's part to have milk spots, but at least it occurred because of something the Mint did (as opposed to post-Mint damage). Same thing with haze - no big deal to me. In fact, it adds a little character!
I learn something new everyday----I had always thought that the haze that shows on alot of 2000 PF sets was also from the wash the mint was working with---it seems that there are alot more 2000 with haze then any other date. Speedy
from what i understand when they (pcgs, anacs, NGC) grade a coin its a technical grade, you may have two coins that both grade the same (like MS-64) but one looks awful (bad toning) and the other looks great, but technically they are both the same grade. so maybe that proof with the haze grades prf69, but given the choice wouldn't you want a proof that grades the same but has no haze? just as the addage says, buy the coin not the holder
Read my post again Speedy - it is believed to be caused by the wash. A comment on grading coins with haze or milk spots - it definitely matters. If a coin has either one when submitted for grading the coin will not be graded as high as it might have been if the haze or spots were not there. Many folks who submit the coins know this and so they will sometimes dip the coins that have haze before submission. This can temporarily remove the haze if it is light and not too well developed. But usually the haze will return on the coin after it has been slabbed. Dipping does not remove the milk spots though. But if the coin is new enough, the spots may not have appeared at the time the coin is slabbed. But later, after slabbing the spots can appear. That's why you sometimes see a slabbed coin in a high grade with haze or spots - it wasn't visible when the coin was slabbed.
