1858 Flying Eagle

As far as "cleaning" or "conserving" that flying eagle (one of my favorite coins): The green color you see is a patina that has progressed too far and could be called verdigris or corrosion. There is some fear that if you remove the verdigris you will remove some of the copper and end up with a pitted coin. Many people on this forum are also adamantly against using acetone on copper. With all that being said, to err on the side of caution, you could soak the coin in water for a few days, up to a week. It is preferred to use distilled or deionized water, but if you use tap water, try and rinse it with some distilled or deionized water, or at least some rubbing alcohol. After this a dip in acetone will remove excess water and "fix" the verdigris so it won't get any worse. You could also try some coin cleaners such as VerdiCare which you can get at Wizard Coin Supply or probably on e-bay. In the final analysis, you are not going to get rich off this coin, but it is a really neat coin to have and enjoy, and clean it any way you want, after all it is metal and it is yours.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.