I hadn't considered toning to be anything other than a blemish on a coin. After reading the threads here I've learned otherwise. I remembered that I had a stash of pennies with a few that had some toning. Here are six that stood out from the rest as having a different color. The one on the bottom right seems to have the nicest color. The one on the top left I assume is not considered toned but rather as having corrosion taking place, correct?
I'm sorry to tell you this...but those are not toned-- I'm not sure what happed to them all. I'm sure some of the guys will post some photos of some toned coins--- Speedy
A "toned" coin is one whose surface has been altered, by time and natural exposure to the elements, or artificially by exposure to certain chemicals. Since coins differ in their composition, they are also going to differ in the ways in which they can acquire "tone." Silver Morgan Dollars for instance will often acquire a beautiful golden hue over time. Others will showcase a cartwheel or yellows, blues, and reds. Eventually, with enough exposure to the elements, silver dollars will turn a dark grey or black - as will almost any silver. The toning that usually naturally occurs on Morgan Dollars and other silver coins, is caused by exposure to air. If you were to bury a Morgan Dollar in the ground, you might end up with different "toning" - say a dark black or purple color. Since Lincoln Cents do not have the same composition as Morgan Dollars ;-) they do not tone in the same fashion. Cents will usually turn from their original bright red to a dark brown color with exposure to air. At times, as in the cause of the coin in the lower right, they can also turn a shade of red. The blue-green on some of the coins noted is still toning/patina, in that it is a chemical alteration of the coins surface due to natural or artificial exposure to certain elements, but in this case it is particularly unattractive - and also damaging. If the surface of the coins are not stablized, eventually major corrosion will occur. So, personally, I would call all of these coins toned since they do not exhibit their original brilliant red color. Most appear to have turned the normal brown color you would expect, while a couple of taken on a more reddish hue that is not that unusual. Four of the coins show signs of a damaging chemical reaction on their surface and where they valuable, this would have to be stopped before they were more seriously damaged. A few of them also show signs of damage already.
cdcda Why would you say "altered"?? Seems to me that an altered coins is when someone has made it something it is not. I would say a toned coin is different than an altered one. Don't mean to make you mad or anything just was wondering Speedy
I guess it is a good thing these coins aren't valuable. Had they been, what is the best way to stop the damage and stabailize the coins?
I used the term "altered" to reference the fact that the surface had changed due to a reaction to chemicals that were either naturally present in the environment in which it was stored, or in some cases could have been artificially introduced. As for stabilizing the coins, and this was a perfect choice of words, this is not something to be attempted to the average collector or dealer. There are companies which provide this service. In the case of the coins pictured, some of which exhibit what is commonly referred to as "Bronze Disease" check out the following link for some information on how it occurs and can be stabilized... http://nautarch.tamu.edu/class/anth605/File12.htm
I am not goig to argue with anyone over the definiton of toning, but in my own opinion I see toning as a discoloration of the original surfaces of a coin. In other words, when a coin circulates and the original surfaces are gone, what you have then is tarnish or corrosion I underatand that it is all the same thing in theory (chemical reaction with the metal), but to me toning is the original surfcaes in a different color.
