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Author Topic: Beware of RPC II 636  (Read 2461 times)

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Permaneder

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Beware of RPC II 636
« on: April 28, 2021, 06:49:32 pm »
Most respected ladies and gentlemen,
a couple years ago a somewhat reputable European seller auctioned this specimen of RPC II 636, which went unsold:



Now this here specimen is going to be auctioned by the same seller in a few days:



Diameter, weight, centering, surface damage are identical, but the patina looks entirely different. Could it be the same specimen having undergone some sort of treatment? (One that would be hardly accounted for – the coin was ranked 'very fine' in 2019 just as it is now.) Otherwise, I'd call foul play. If I'm wrong correct me, please.

Sincerely

Alois Permaneder

 

Offline Ron C2

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Re: Beware of RPC II 636
« Reply #1 on: April 28, 2021, 07:46:30 pm »
To me, it looks like they boiled it in lye to treat bronze disease. It turns them that brown color.
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Offline Dominic T

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Re: Beware of RPC II 636
« Reply #2 on: April 28, 2021, 08:01:26 pm »
Identical flan = definitely same coin.
DT

Permaneder

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Re: Beware of RPC II 636
« Reply #3 on: April 28, 2021, 08:13:42 pm »
Ah, I see! Bronze disease would be those lighter spots on the obverse, right? That would account for the widespread pitting & general roughness too, I guess. No wonder that they would be discreet about it either – bronze disease does sound sinister, even more so under our current predicament.

Thank you sir, it would have been somewhat disappointing for me to have to put that particular shop in the sin bin.

Sincerely

Alois Permaneder


Offline Meepzorp

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Re: Beware of RPC II 636
« Reply #4 on: April 29, 2021, 06:42:31 am »
Hi Perm

Ron C2 may be correct. A similar thing happened to a Tiberius AE As that I have that also had bronze disease. My coin also changed color after treatment, but I didn't boil mine in lye. I treated my BD coins by soaking them in sodium sesquicarbonate.

Here is the coin I am referring to (third coin):

https://www.forumancientcoins.com/meepzorp/ri_tiberius.htm

Before treatment, my Tiberius coin was a rust color, with green BD. After treatment, it is a very dark green (almost black) color. Compared to the coin in this topic, it has similar BD damage on the obverse portrait and the reverse.

Meepzorp

Offline Joe Sermarini

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Re: Beware of RPC II 636
« Reply #5 on: April 29, 2021, 11:34:34 am »
I don't see anything nefarious in this chain of events.  If they are like most auction sellers they likely did not hold this coin for the last two years. They may not even know they are selling a coin they handled before.   
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Permaneder

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Re: Beware of RPC II 636
« Reply #6 on: April 29, 2021, 03:29:18 pm »
Thank you everyone for clearing my doubts!

 

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