Hello everyone, This is my first post - although I've been lurking without an account for some time. I'm trying to figure out what's going on with this Peace Dollar reverse - I've seen coins with spotty toning, but this is definitely not. The photos make it appear as if these are actually small indentations, but it does not appear like that in person. I'm also interested in the discoloration of the silver in the very center vs. the perimeter (more apparent in the second photo). I was thinking some sort of partial polishing gone wrong. Opinions?
It looks like someone may have attempted to remove some unsightly tarnish along the rim, but this is just a guess. Chris
My Guess: It was in a coin album like one of the older Whitman albums. If so, acetone should remove it.
The silver has toned, and it is unattractive toning in my opinion. Chris is right, that somebody could have attempted to remove some ugly toning from the rim, and that is the remnant of a cleaning. Better photographs would help.
Looks like toning to me. Specifically it looks like the remains of toning left on the coin after the coin was dipped. I would agree. The disturbance in the luster (in the center) looks exactly like somebody (and not necessarily the person who dipped the coin) tried to wipe the remaining toning off with a cloth.
Thanks everyone! If this is residual toning from a dip, would the acetone procedure described in this thread help at all? http://www.cointalk.com/threads/proper-acetone-procedure.193708/ Also - what is the heptane treatment? I've never heard that mentioned. How would that differ from acetone? I've posted a slightly better photo.
No, acetone will not remove toning. And there are many other things that acetone will not remove either.
Definite remnant of toning from a dip or cleaning. Doug is absolutely right. Not an attractive reverse, unfortunately. The superior picture helped show that clearly.
