So, I've seen various threads on this
forum asking when to give a coin up as impossible. I think I've found that point. I just took this coin out of its week long olive oil soak and brushed it using a
brass brush. A decent amount of dirt came off, so I decided to attempt to use the
dental pick on it. This seemed to
work great, and the dirt was flying off the coin. Unfortunately, it did not stop. The material coming off was brownish
red and gritty. I was able to
pick down about 1.5 mm from the 'surface' of the coin. The surface also
had some white and green encrustations as well, perhaps this is
bronze disease at its worst? After some more picking, the coin fractured into three pieces. The center is a sickly, blackish purple color.
I'm not really concerned about the loss of this coin. Yes, it was a one-of-a-kind ancient artifact and yes now my
collection is less one coin, but hey - not everything can survive the passage of time. All in all, this has been a fun learning experience. If I
had to compare it to anything, I'd say its like losing a tooth as a child. Fear and dread of what may happen, but overall fascination. I'll post some pics if I get the chance.