Could someone comment on what caused this stain

Stain on this coin is on the obverse but not on the reverse. I at first thought it was from the staple but it was not found on the reverse and it looks like it is in the coin and not just on the surface...Thanks in advance for any in put.

 

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The only way to know for sure is to find the person that stained it.
It wasn't me.

 

Thanks for your in put rickmp...that narrows it down.

 

Thanks GDJMSP..I have no intention of cleaning it...you and rickmp have been helpful. Hard to say which one of you were the MOST helpful.

 

Looks like something spilled/leaked onto the 2x2, there is light staining on the 2x2 adjacent to where the stain is on the coin.

I'll vote for "Improper Storage"!

 

Beefer518 I removed a staple from the area that you make reference to thinking it had bled onto the coin before I obtained it....Staple was clean and no rust or color on it.
Just offered it up for some in put because I with my limited knowledge had no clue.
Thanks

 

Then I guess what I'm seeing is shadowing from the cardboard bending from the staple removal.

Could it be from some contaminant on the plastic of the 2x2 when it was sealed? Maybe something on a finger at the time?

 

NO! what you said you see is there, it just did not come from the staple that I removed.

 

It was improperly cleaned at some point in it's life.

I had some like that which I posted here. I later on "properly" cleaned it.

Although it does look like a magic marker !!

 

GDJMSP I agree with you and am feeling foolish for having made the post...but doing dumb things comes easy for me.

 

Yup, unless we know the entire history of the coin and who had it, when and what they did with it .. we can only guess.

 

I commented on what caused the stain. Isn't that what you asked for?

 

I am 99.9% certain it is ink and done by someone intentionally...why?

Notice how the largest stain pattern hugs and perfectly conforms to the shapes of the bottom of the letters in the word "UNUM," as if someone ran a marker or a fountain pen (don't laugh; this coin IS from 1897) along the raised letters as a guide. They then just colored the rest all the way up to the rim. (Highly unlikely it is toning or was unintentional damage as it covers the entire word UNUM in that spot; unlikely a coincidence).

You also see a small, round mark underneath it as if they touched it with the pen's tip.

You also see how someone started tracing around the front of her hair, but stopped.

Based on all these facts concerning the shape of these three stain patterns formed in these 3 places, I say it is 100% human created, intentional damage (not from an accidental spill) and I feel with 99.9% certainty it is ink based on its color and that ink can stain silver in this manner. It also appears to "run" as ink does in certain spots.

 

Someone needed a backwards "UNUM" (MUNU?) stamp for something

 

Sure rick...but I didn't expect you to be so definitive...I was overwhelmed with your information..Thanks again

 

What could I have written that would have underwhelmed you?

 

I am not use to people giving me information in such great detail with only one request.
Trying to get use to it is difficult...Thanks

 

I agree with JCro its a PMD or of this type of application. Silver in its most oxidized state is black but this is not silver oxidized onto the surface as JCro explains. This is not some form of oxidation growth (AgO). The Moderator is NEVER wrong. I keep checking on him. He says clean it - I agree - acetone or xylene. Preferably in a jar with a lid so you can allow a 24 hour immersion without evaporation losses so all this GUNK or INK can come off. Expect a light stained area in the end.

John Lorenzo
Numismatist &
Moderator Assistant LOL