It's all speculation . yes/no . No way to tell for sure. If the coin in question came with a pedigree , perhaps that might convince those that question any coin surviving in that condition of preservation . Are you seriously questioning all those blast white coins that have survived from that era simply for the lack of toning ? Is the business of numismatics that corrupted ? I spoke with NGC today , specifically about this coin in question . The Graders agreed that this coin was well preserved , a superb quality coin , and had no reason to suspect any cleaning. If you can say definitely this coin has been dipped, simply because you think it unrealistic for a coin to survive in pristine condition from the 1900's isn't something I would have expected from you . Now I too have said, that many U.S. coins that have been encapsulated, probably had undergone some degree of cleaning , at some point prior to being encapsulated . That doesn't mean that it is impossible for a coin such as this to have been preserved in pristine condition, without work . To do so , does an injustice to the hobby and many notable collections. No way to tell for certain about this coin , only speculation , and while I understand how one could question this possibility , it is possible , otherwise all those blast white coins from the 20's , 30's etc have been chemically enhanced . Are they all ? Don't forget, we are looking at a photo , and photo's can be very deceiving and manipulated . Coin in hand , this coin may look a bit different. There may actually be some tints of toning .
It had to be dipped to be that white. It's a great coin still because it was done right. At almost 100 years old it would have some toning if never touched. That's just the way silver is.
Sound like we are now back to the question is dipping consider cleaning a coin. I don't believe your coin has been "cleaned" but I do suspect it has been dipped properly awhile back. I personally don't consider a coin that has been dipped properly a "cleaned" coin and if I understand neither does the grading professionals at the TPG's.
p.s. I have seen several rolls of undipped coins from the 30's that are as untoned as the day they were minted. It is not inconceivable to think some coins from the teens have survived untoned. Unlikely, yes, impossible, not by any stretch of the imagination -- IMO of course.
Lets just say the VAST majority of blast white coins have been dipped... There are no doubt original white examples out there... but they are scarce.
I can keep going with examples of blast white examples of this issue . I think it's unrealistic to think they all HAVE BEEN DIPPED.
That is what I have said all along, they are out there but scarce. If a copper wreath cent from 1793 can survive in red, no one is questioning that they could, its just that 95+% didn't, and they were lightly dipped, which is not market graded harsh cleaning.
There are very few absolutes in life, much less numismatics. Those who speak in absolutes are generally trying to make a point -- present company and post included.
We will never all agree on this so let me ask this. What type of holder or how could a piece of silver have been stored for almost 100 years and show no toning? I might change my thinking if someone comes with a method that could do such. I'm leaving copper out of this.
I have seen coins come out of paper rolls blast white before. The last ones I saw were dimes from the 1950's... so if they were going to tone they surely would have by now. What they are stored in is only one part of the toning equation... humidity and temperature change are also other factors that can cause toning. I'm sure that certian coins kept under certian constant circumstances will not tone.
LD, I presume you are not aware that many of the GSA coins were brilliant, undipped, and stored in bags in US government vaults, in some cases for more than 80 years. The point being that if you limit humidity and airflow (and thus sulphur), you essentially limit toning. I suspect (not being a trained chemist or metallurgist), that the coins near the edge of the bags that were toned acted as a type of "sacrificial anode" (sorry for the nautical term) or "corrosion sync" in protecting the untoned coins inside the bag. My understanding is that Intercept Shield products use a similar phenomenon, with a sulphur sync (in the case of Intercept Shield, my understanding is the metal is copper). Perhaps someone more versed in the physics of this can comment....Mike
Yeah, but SLQs were not stored in bags in a vault - none of 'em. Kind of hard to limit sulphur in a paper roll isn't it ? But yes Mike, it is possible there are a few original, white SLQ's out there. But the vast majority of white examples have been dipped. Not one of the biggest names and most knowledgeable people there are in numismatics disagree with this. Not even one.
It has probably been lightly dipped, but so gently as to preserve tons of luster. So the bigger question is : do you like the coin or not ? Personally, I think it's very flashy.
