Whats the difference between cleaning and restoring coins.Dont you have to clean a coin to restore it? I saw a show on the SS Republic and the coins recovered from her.The coins all had some coral buildup and such on them but then they were all sent somewhere in GA.to be restored.So whats the difference?
semantics, really. restoring a coin is cleaning it - in this case by experts who are professionally trained. For shipwreck coins and ancient coins found in the dirt, cleaning is used for the purposes of removing the excessive junk that has attached to the coins surface over the many years in less than ideal environmental conditions. The reasoning is usually that it removes things that will further damage the coin if left unchecked OR that the condition of the coin is in such disrepair that conserving it will only improve the value. In these limited cases, cleaning is not a bad thing.
