Horn Silver????

So I have been collecting ancients for some time now but I have little idea to what "Horn silver" is. Is it like BD in that it will detroy the host coin? Can it spread? What does it look like? Does it lower the value of a coin?

I admit it, I am completely ignorant about horn silver and would like someone to explain it to me.
Can some one show me a pic of what horn silver looks like vs a black patina/tarnish on a silver coin.
Thanks guys and gals

 

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Horn silver is a type of salt, Silver Chloride (AgCl). It's an encrustation that can develop on coins when the silver in the coin reacts with hydrogen chloride (HCL) in the ground. Coins with AgCl are typically ground finds, as HCL rarely occurs in the atmosphere. It can occur in phases: a light, non-crystalline phase, and a darker, crystalline phase. It can make a coin look pretty awful, and it's not not easy to clean, so I recommend avoiding coins that show horn silver. However, to my knowledge, it won't continue to grow, like BD, unless you expose it directly to HCL.

 

Tarnish is another type of salt, AgS, which forms on silver coins when they're exposed to sulfur. It's very easy to tell the difference between tarnish and horn silver because tarnish is only a few molecules thin, and the coin's surfaces still look smooth, even when the tarnish has gone to black. Horn silver manifests itself as encrustations that make the surface very rough. I don't have any coins with horn silver in my collection, but I did come across this image on the web...'



That's a pretty bad case, and it should answer your question as to whether the coin is devalued by having horn silver deposits. The answer is always yes, but the extent of the devaluation depends on the amount of horn silver and the buyer.

 

Many thanks JA.
Some guy( probably joking) said that my avatar coin, which was very expensive, had horn silver.
So that is what got me paranoid.

 

Can we see a full image of it?

 

I suppose that the dark spots are just tarnish or scrapes.

 

I have no horn silver in my collection either (not that I am aware of), but I don't see any on your coin MM.

 

On the reverse of the Valens Siliqua, it looks a little crystalized near Victory and on the obverse near DN VAL?

 

I don't see any horn silver on that coin, but the image is small. If there is any, it's minimal.

 

With the Valens, again, hard to say because it's a small image.

 

+1

 

If you have a difficult time determining whether you have a horn silver problem, you probably don't have a horn silver problem. Also, rusted dies can make the surfaces of the coin appear like horn silver in texture, but generally the color of horn silver is darker than the rest of the coin.

 

Thanks guys.
I suppose my friend had a point when he said I was "paranoid like Constantius II"

JA, I think you have earned a pint or a nice cup of wine. Your choice!

 

I've had enough, thanks.

 

Jokes only a few can understand. Like crazy people jokes... jajaja