After 20 years of handling ancient coins I finally broke one. India Amirs of Multan, Shibl 840-861/4 AD, AR Damma, Brahmi Jayanta Raja, 0.37g, 12mm Obverse: Sharada legend जयंत राज – (Sri Jayaṃta Rāja standing for Sri Jayanta Raja - “Sri Victorious Raja”). Reverse: Stylised fire altar of three dots, stylized Sharada “Sri” above, ‘Ta’ to left and ‘Pa’ to right, Arabic ﻞﯿﺳ (Lillah Shibl – “Shibl in God”) below. This coin survived a trip through the USPS high speed sorting machines but did not survive me attempting to remove it from its mylar flip for rephotographing. It wasn't an expensive coin but was pretty nice for this early Islamic issue from India. Should I glue it back together or keep it busted as a reminder to be careful with thin coins?
I feel your pain @Ed Snible . It was (and is) a nice coin. If it was me I would leave it in two pieces. The break is now part of its history.
Bummer, Ed. Not bad though considering the number of coins you've owned or handled! I'd probably bond them together. If left apart, and if stored together, the pieces might abrade one another and cause further damage.
...Well, okay, the first 'temple' denier of Louis I (son and heir of Charlemagne) I ever got was deeply crystallized, and shattered. ...The pics I took, with a bottom-shelf (and now antiquated) digital camera (...a good match for my level of aptitude), are as bad as the example. ...Still have the pieces, though. But on a lighter note, here's the eventual replacement. Rev. Temple facade. XPISTIANA RELIGIO. (The first two letters in Greek. --Evoking the selective use of Greek characters in the reverse legends of the 13th-14th century, Capetian gros tournois, along with the Kyrie of the Latin mass.) Obv. +HLVDOVVICVS IMP.
"According to Title 18, Chapter 17 of the U.S. Code, which sets out crimes related to coins and currency, anyone who “alters, defaces, mutilates, impairs, diminishes, falsifies, scales, or lightens” coins can face fines or prison time".
ANASTASIUS Half Follis OBVERSE: D N ANASTASIVS P P AVG - Diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right REVERSE: Large K - cross to left, Γ to right Struck at Constantinople 491-518 AD .03g, 8.5mm SB 23
Yeah, I do not know what I would do of an expensive one broke, but I have cheaper silvers break in shipment. If they go together very well, I superglue them together, figuring they are safer that way than apart. Apart they will continue to break. I note it on the flip that it is glued.
I made the same mistake with a 1480 silver thin coin. One I liked. And I was looking for it for quite a while. It was already bent slightly and cracked, but after manipulating it a few times the crack just got bigger. Good news is that it was situated at the edge. I tried to use superglue but it's way too thin to make the repair without being noticeable from 1 kilometer and I felt quite annoyed about it.
That's too bad! 20 years is a pretty good run. I've learned to be wary of dropping coins after a flan flaw broke off my Athens tetradrachm after it fell only 12 inches from my hand into a felt lined tray. Oops!
This was my best coin when I bought it. I had to show folks, but unfortunately, a lady squeezed it between her thumb and two fingers. I could see what happened by the look on her face. It took me a while to decide I did not prepare her to hold the coin. It is in a cointain now. If you do not look hard, it is ok. I did not glue it. The coin had a crack when I bought it. The edge was broken as you can see in the pic. Today, I would pass on the coin.
My favorite clothing brand, advertising before Black Friday in 2011. If something gets broke, I think it’s a good idea to fix it. I don’t see why there should be a difference with a coin. I think the previous posts show some excellent works of repair. I would love to learn how to repair things using gold, like the Japanese do with pottery.