Guess the crusty coin, and their Journey to "Clean"

Someone on CT recently posted an amazing cleaning job using these tools and I think that's how he used them. I didn't bookmark the thread but wish I had. It was within the last month.

Edited: LOL, it was you! That Nero/Victory was the post I was remembering. I'm not sure where I read about the "press and brush" technique-- maybe some other thread, or maybe I'm imagining things. Anyway, carry on. You know more about cleaning than I do .

 

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Yes, just a smaller version. Lots of different brass and polishing attachments.

 

Quick update on the Agrippa As:

After a few days in DW, more brushing and a lil picking Thursday night (focusing on the top of the reverse), then a last soak over the weekend and a final brushing. Due to the exposed metal during the more intensive cleaning (some obverse and top of reverse), gave it a brief dip in a mild liver of sulphur mix to even it out/coat it. Then a warm dry to remove any water, finishing off with a Ren wax coating.

This is the results...

Agrippa, AE As,
Struck under Caligula 37-41 AD, Rome mint
Obverse: M AGRIPPA L F COS III, head of Agrippa, left, wearing rostral crown.
Reverse: Neptune standing facing, head left, naked except for cloak draped behind him & over both arms, holding small dolphin in right hand & vertical trident in left, S C across field.
References: RIC I 58
Size: 27.5mm, 8.3g

The weight changed from 8.4g to 8.3g. This coin has a pretty nice profile!

The Caligula has been patiently waiting on DW this whole week.

 

Update on the Caligula Vesta As:

Took out the coin, did some manual cleaning with mild results. Next I dug under the bathroom sink and did a series of soaks in Lime-away mixed with more manual cleaning, which was more productive. I focused on the reverse with pretty good results and worked a bit on the obverse (the tougher side of the two) and made some progress. It's now sitting back in DW for a while.

This green crust is a tough one! Really hard and dug-in...


FWIW, here's the "play-by-play" photos on the Agrippa:

 

Final Update on the Caligula Vesta As:

I've worked on it for a few hours tonight using the same method as mentioned in the post above ^^^ and got to a point where I was happy with the outcome and the legend was about as clear as I was going to get it.



So to finish it off, similar to the Agrippa, I gave it one last brush, a quick dip in a mild sulphur mix to even out the tone and seal the exposed metal (that was under parts of the crust and some pits), a warm dry in the toaster oven, and a little seal and polish with Ren wax.

This is the final result:

Caligula (Gaius), AE As
Struck 37-38 AD, Rome mint
Obverse: C CAESAR AVG GERMANICVS PON M TR POT, bare head of Caligula left.
Reverse: VESTA, Vesta, veiled and draped, seated left on throne with ornamented back and legs, holding patera in right hand and long transverse sceptre in LEFT, S-C across field.
References: RIC I 38
Size: 29mm, 11.7g (*down from 12.2g)

I'm really impressed with the amount of detail of Gaius' hair that was hiding under the crud! Also, the level of detail in Vesta's chair, with the ornate dots on the back and legs, and the detail in the folds of the cloth around her knees and beneath her legs, and her veiled head! It is pretty well centered, has a nice full sized flan, and was a nice strike.

And here is the "play-by-play" via progressive images over the past week-ish, from start to finish:

 

I'm truly impressed (and surprised) by your results!

When you first posted your coins in uncleaned state, I didn't expect them to look appealing at all below that crust. Yet, both turned out to be actually better than my own specimens, both of which were bought cleaned:


Caligula, Roman Empire, As, 37–38 AD, Rome mint. Obv: C CAESAR GERMANICVS PON M TR POT, bare-headed head of Caligula left. Rev: VESTA, Vesta seated left holding patera and sceptre. S–C. 28 mm, 10.18 g. Ref: RIC I, 38. Ex Spartan, ex D. Pichler.


Agrippa (issue by Titus), Roman Empire, 80–81 AD, As, Rome Mint. Obv: M AGRIPPA L F COS III, head of Agrippa left wearing rostral crown. Rev: IMP T VESP AVG REST, Neptune standing left holding dolphin and trident, S C in fields. 26mm, 8.47 g. Ref: RIC II, 470 (for Titus). Ex Ken Dorney, auction 7, lot 54 (his picture).