Cleaning and Care of Roman Coins
Cleaning of ancient coins is not often necessary, and if you do it
incorrectly, you will reduce their value. It is very important that you
not use silver polish or a silver dip cleaner because these readily ruin
coins. Your ancient coins are almost always worth more dirty than
improperly cleaned. Never try to remove natural oxidation or tarnish.
The coin is worth more with the oxidation intact. If you really want
to clean your coins, you should do it with warm water and mild
detergent. If you happen to have an uncirculated coin or proof coin, do
not immerse them in anything, including water.
The first step in cleaning ancient coins is to wash your hands with soap
to get rid of oils and bits of grime. Place a soft towel, folded so it’s
thick, on your work surface. This will not only provide a place for them
to dry, but will cushion any coins you drop.
Fill a plastic bowl with warm tap water. Make sure the bowl is
plastic: metal, china, or glass can scratch coins. Add a little bit of
washing up liquid – just a small squirt is sufficient. Fill a second
bowl with distilled water for final rinsing. Most supermarkets carry
distilled water. Clean coins one at a time. Take the coin and immerse
it in the soapy water bath. Don’t scrub, but very gently rub the coin
between your fingers (if you’ve ever cleaned contact lenses, use about
the same amount of pressure) from the center of the coin outwards.
Rinse the coin under running water. Gently rub away soap residue. Don’t
rub any grit particles you find, because you can very easily scratch
your coin that way. Once your coin is rinsed, immerse it in the
distilled water to remove contaminants left by tap water. Just gently
swish the coin in the distilled water. Holding the coin by the edges,
set the coin on the towel and allow it to air dry. Make sure all coins
are completely dry before you store them. Never store coins near any
chemical that could cause changes to the coin. If you store coins in
paper, make sure it is acid free and sulfur free. Coin “flips” made of
plastic with an envelope for the coin and an envelope for a card
describing the coin, are a handy way to store coins and are commonly
used by coin collectors.
There are also plastic pages you can fit into a three ring binder that
can hold 20 flips on one page. Flips make it easy to pick up a coin and
look at it from both sides without touching it. For ancient coins, you
should choose the type of flip that is not made from PVC, because PVC
can change a coin’s surface condition. The non-PVC flips are sometimes
called safety flips.
Along with acid free, sulfur free paper envelopes, safety flips are
the safest way to store ancient coins. Whether you choose acid free
paper or safety flips, you should always store coins away from humidity
and heat higher than 30 degrees centigrade. |
