"Full Silvering" Red Patina Issues a thing?

[Elliott D]

Hello experts! I purchased this lot from an online auction website and they claimed that these coins were"full silvering." I have the coins in my possession and have to admit that most of them have what only can be described as a "shimmering" layer that seems to blend into the red patina. Any thoughts about these issues being "full silvering" and/or any specific examples that come to mind? I am trying to determine pricing, too, in order to see if I made a wise investment. Thank you!

[Nathaniel N2]

These are a couple of coins I have that I might call "full silvering," really it's more around %50 to %80 silvering. They all look silver in large areas. I would not say that in their current state your coins match that category. The red patina is pretty. If you clean off the encrustations and wax them they should be really stunning! Coins, unless they are gold or highly desirable issues, are hard to judge as investments. These in particular look like late roman bronze issues which despite being plated with silver, aren't ever the most expensive of coins. I would treat them as pieces to be enjoyed.

[Nathaniel N2]

How would I clean these? They look tricky. I won't tell you exactly what you should do but lots of distilled water, careful work with toothpicks and fiberglass brushes would be a good place to start.

[SC]

There is an entire pinned thread on cleaning "silvered (not silver) coins".

There are two challenges.

1) Was the silvering intact when the other patinas formed?  As you will see in that thread it is definitely possible for patinas - often green malachite - to entirely cover the silvering.  In such cases it may be possible to remove the patina or encrustations and reveal the silvering.

2) Can the patina or encrustations be removed without harming the silvering?  This is a separate question.  I have cleaned malachite crystallization off silvering.  Under magnification the malachite looks like green glass.  It can be "popped" off with a scalpel and the silvering underneath is often in perfect shape.  Examples in that thread.  I have also cleaned coins that look the the one Nathaniel posted.  These have a hard green patina that is not as glassy as pure malachite.  These don't "pop" off but need to be removed micro-layer by micro-layer either by scalpel or by file (i.e diamond dusted dental pick).  The silvering is often less perfect in these examples.

I have never worked on coins like yours.  So I don't know if they will clean up.  But in my experience that brick red stuff is extremely hard and difficult to remove.  You could try to see if you can remove a tiny spot of the red with a scalpel, but should be prepared for this not to work.

Frankly, they are interesting as is.  Not as clean as many LRBCs get but a very interesting patina showing remnants of touching coins.

SC

[Nathaniel N2]

I want to see how these turn out for you. Keep us informed!

[Elliott D]

Here is one coin after a quick cleaning, i.e., soaked in distilled water for 30-minutes and brushed with a fiberglass brush. Definitely see silver - thoughts/opinions on how to proceed? Thank you!

[Merinda]

In my experience that type of red corrosion product is difficult to remove even with the use of aggressive techniques, let alone soft approaches like water and brushes. I don’t think there is much chance of retaining any of the so-called ‘full silvering’. Sorry I couldn’t provide any positive options!

[Nathaniel N2]

Honestly that coin looks pretty good to me as is now. Ren wax, buff, attribute and flip would be my procedure.

[Nathaniel N2]

If I was really careful, I might use a diamond encrusted tool, pick, dremel bit in a vice, or otherwise, and try moving it in very small circles with no pressure on the green encrustation.