1 month in mineral oil, details starting to show on some buried roman bronzes i picked up as part of a lot. this the best looking one so far. back in the oil and i'll check again in another month
Just an FYI with soaking ancient coins in oils. I once soaked several very dirty ancient Roman coins in olive oil for something like 3 years before finally taking them out to see how well they cleaned up. I was told that olive oil was the one substance which would never adversely affect ancient coins. I proved my source wrong. The dirt, which was rock hard at the time of submersion, did soften but the olive oil left the bronze coins a bit whitish and they just didn't look quite right. So anytime you see someone say that olive oil or any type of soaking oil for that matter won't have an adverse impact on coins it is best to take such words with caution. I guess the moral of the story is to soak in moderation and to frequently change out your oil.
yes i decided to use mineral oil after quite a bit of reading most books and sites recommended olive oil (not virgin do to acidity) or mineral. Most of the modern articles recommend mineral oil over the the olive oil because of color issues with the bronze. so far the mineral oil seems to be working very well with a little help from a soft toothbrush about once a week (then change oil to get rid of loosened grit)
Hi and Welcome to CT mrweaseluv ! My recommandation for these ancient would be to use only distilled water and...if thre coin is really rock-crusty electrolysis :devil: Will use this thread to post some cleaning experiment ( it's not hijacking hopefully ) Just my 2 AE4 's - for the moment - Froggy
Yes i read about the electrolysis method but don't really see an easy way to set this up. This is really my 1st experiment in "coin cleaning" as i recieved these 10 coins as part of a lot. Most of the coins are totaly encrusted and after 1 month in the oil still look more like round flat rocks then coins. Any additional information on the proper ways to decrust them would be greatly appreaciated. The articles i have found so far have not been greatly informative.
I must give a stronger discertation on using electrolysis. I used electrolysis a lot ten years ago and it did much more harm than good. It would clean up all of the dirt but would often eat away at the bronze without it being realized until it was too late. Also, electrolysis leaves the coin exposed to just its bare metal. This takes away the coins patina and leaves it subject to oxidization from the air. This is where you must learn how to create a sealent for the coin. I have heard of people using honey and baking the coins in their oven. I never had any success with creating a sealant so I was left with several electrolysis coins developing chronic oxidation problems. I had at most two coins that I can recall where using electrolysis was beneficial. I have many more to look at which have had their metal eaten away or have suffered recurring corrosion issues. My conclusion and experience from using electrolysis is that it is best left to the professionals.
