Questions about Coin Toning

[Guest]

For the past few months now I have been saving toned coins found in bank rolls. For some reason I find them to be… soothingly aesthetic.

I’ve read that many people try to artificially tone coins so they can sell them at higher prices. Is there a way for a newbie to tell the difference between natural vs artificial toning? If yes, what should one look for?

Also, at what point should one consider whether it’s worth it to have their toned coin slabbed?


Does the following coin (found in a bank roll) appear to be naturally toned or artificially? Or can it not be determined via photo?

[VAB2013]

coppy, I am not able to open and view your photos. Are the supposed to be jpeg's

[coppy]

coppy, I am not able to open and view your photos. Are the supposed to be jpeg's

Thanks for the heads-up, VAB. They were gifs. I fixed it now.

(For some reason my uploaded gif's do not open properly in this site. I had to change them to jpeg's).

[VAB2013]

You are welcome. That coin does have nice toning. Glad you have asked this question, I have wondered about that myself

[admrose]

There is a science behind it and all coins will tone to various degrees but the reason people artificially tone them is to enhance "eye appeal" and command a higher sale price. An artificially toned coin is easily detected by the major TPG services and labelled as such, so you have to be wary of unslabbed toned coins. Basically, if it looks like someone held a lighter under it and ran the coin through the flame, it's artificially toned.

[VAB2013]

admrose, thank you for that explanation. I have seen coins on eBay that are listed as having a rainbow toning, is that what a coin looks like that has been torched? On the flip side of that question... you know how some of the older Lincoln's (I would say in the 1980's because that is the decade that I have most often seen this) the coins sometimes have a nice apple green or blueish patina the same way a copper roof discolors with age. Would an artificially toned coin have that same green/blue effect?

[CODYJ]

nice website about toned coins--http://jhonecash.com/index.asp

[VAB2013]

nice website about toned coins--http://jhonecash.com/index.asp

Thank you CODYJ, appreciate the reference but I am unable to find anything on this site that pertains to the artificial toning of Lincoln cents. I have researched this before and could not find anything other than coins for sale on eBay and a few random hits on other coin forums. No info that I could find of value. Maybe my googler is just not working

[Maineman750]

There are a few threads right here on the forum, here is one :http://www.lincolncentresource.net/f...tificial+toned

[VAB2013]

OMG Maineman that is gorgeous!! Can I have it? Nice... very nice!