I recently noticed a thread in which someone referred to using putty to fill dings in gold coins, which then slipped by the TPG. That thread got me worried about the area in the field at 3-4 o'clock on this coin. I don't own the coin but was considering it, and I have periodically seen this off-color on photos of gold coins. Is this what this "putty" looks like? Or is this more likely just a lighting issue during photography? Thanks for any help!
Here is an interesting article - I want to share this website and it's info with you - http://raregoldcoins.com/market-blog/a-basic-guide-to-detecting-doctored-gold-coins This was mentioned in the article - quote "Many of the U.S. gold coins that have been doctored have had substances put on the surfaces in an attempt to hide hairlines or marks. Often times, substances such as auto body putty or dental wax are lightly coated on the surfaces." closed quote
Ah, fingerprint! The more I stare at it, the more I think you're right. And the dandelion yellow, I just assumed that was an artifact of the lighting... hmmm. paddyman, thanks for that link. I'm still having a bit of trouble imagining how one could use putty, and deal with the coloring and other issues, but that was a very good read about the various things that are done to gold coins.
I agree, that is not putty, merely light wear. It might be just that. But you should also be aware the Rooster coins are well known for being several different shades of color. Color is hard to describe with words, but some are what I would call bright gold, gold. The same color that a new AGE has. Others will be a darker shade kind of like yours. Still others will have a reddish tint to the color, and I don't mean red spots, I mean the whole coin will have a reddish tint to the color. Here's a few pictures to kind illustrate what I mean. Now putty, that's a different thing altogether. The way Doug Winters describes it the article linked to is pretty accurate. As it ages and dries out it gets kind of a whitish cast to it, almost milky in appearance, and is much easier to see. If it has been there long enough it may even flake off a bit. But when fresh, it is very difficult to detect and can fool anybody at times. Only with very careful examination can it be seen. And you have to know what you are seeing when you see it or you will miss it. That's where the machines that NGC and PCGS call "the sniffer" comes in handy. The machines are capable of detecting even the finest traces of putty on a coin, as well as several other substances. But only coins submitted under special grading tiers are run through the sniffer. So many puttied coins still avoid detection by the TPGs, and most other people.
