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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Sallent, post: 2302169, member: 76194&quot;]When JA first posted this coin he asked about the reddish copper-like color around some small areas of the coin.</p><p><br /></p><p>I can&#039;t say for sure what they may be. JA thinks its some sort of tarnish, I think it could perhaps be hoard deposit from this coin being buried by a copper rich source, or coming into contact with other base metals during burial.</p><p><br /></p><p>Notice the deposits are in the areas hardest to clean, while most of the easier areas to clean of the coin are nice silver. There is no deposit on the high points of the hair, only the recessed areas.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]462674[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Same here in the lettering. The very edges between the coin surface and the start of the lettering has reddish deposit, the higher points of the lettering does not, and neither do other areas which are relatively easy to come into contact with any cleaning instruments, fingers, rags, etc.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]462675[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Lastly, this is the one area that is relatively easy to clean in the coin that has any significant amount of coppery color.&nbsp; I can&#039;t say for sure without using a microscope truly capable of seeing cell-sized structures, but again look at the corner of Caracalla&#039;s neck and see the deposits are in the areas harder to clean. This little patch below his neck being the exception, and I think it was due to sloppy cleaning. </p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]462673[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>So my hypothesis is that it has to be deposits on top of the silver surface from contamination while the coin was buried, perhaps with copper or other alloy.</p><p><br /></p><p>Either way though, despite the reddish coppery hue, which is also common in other denarii of this era, it is still a beautiful coin.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]462678[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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