New here! (and showing an uncleaned 3th century Diocletian)

[T1909]

Hi everyone!

I’m a 23-year old coin enthusiast from the Netherlands and new on this forum since yesterday. I’m also in the metal detecting hobby, but not very active anymore since I’ve never found anything more exciting than an nice 1753 German ¼ Stuber coin. The passed few weeks I have been reading a lot about uncleaned Roman coins. When you are new to the subject you only encounter very positive or very negative comments, not much inbetween. Therefore I have ordered just a small first lot of uncleaneds to give it a try.

But while I wait for them to come in in about 2 weeks I thought I may already share a nice Roman coin with you that was found by a friend of mine in Tunesia. It must be a 3th century Deocletian allthough I never see him with the ‘spiked’ crown on the internet. What does this mean? The bust is very nice and detailled but the obverse has some matt darkred spots on it. Does anyone know if this is BD? I really hope not. The bronzebrown coin seems to be covered in bleugreen (active?) copper oxide. I dont think it’s patina. Would you remove it to bring out the fine details to the fullest or would you leave it alone? I love patina, but I dont think this looks very attracting. The coin is stored airtight in a acid-free coinflip and not treated with any wax or other sealing agent. I'm a purist. Hope you enjoy!  

Tim

[RoryduPondius]

that does look like bronze disease. is it soft? if so it definitely is and you have a choice of soaking it in gringotts bronze disease killer or just leaving it alone to disintegrate. sorry your first ancient coin has bd

[T1909]

that does look like bronze disease. is it soft? if so it definitely is and you have a choice of soaking it in gringotts bronze disease killer or just leaving it alone to disintegrate. sorry your first ancient coin has bd

Do you mean the green stuff or the matt red spots?

[RoryduPondius]

The green stuff

[Molinari]

It is light enough in color to be bronze disease but I think it is a fake patina instead.  Bronze disease isn't usually as uniform as this.  If it is BD it is a really bad case.

[areich]

I think it's genuine. Supposedly water finds look like this coin, not sure if this is true. I'm also not sure if it's the same as BD. Probably.

[T1909]

The idea of a fake patina crossed my mind too. In Carthage, Tunesia, you find a lot of bronze Roman replica artifacts with this lightgreen patina. But it was really found in the sand, not bought in a tourist shop. I think it was found near the sea too, so that would explain why it resembles a water found coin. I will try to get rid of the green stuff since we all seem to agree that it's definately not patina. I thought the red spots were the greatest problem on this coin. If the green stuff is actually BD, shouldn't there be pitting in the good bronze underneath?

[ego sum malum]

I think that if you were to remove the green stuff, you would loose detail. As it is, it provides a pleasing contrast and makes the coin easier to Attribute.

[Jiminey]

I don't think that is BD. A coin a got from Joe for the never-ending cleaning contest had the same blueish green stuff on in it. I had assumed it was BD at first as well, but after some research had found out it is not. Look at a bunch of the before and after entries, you will see a few coins that look similar. Take a good look at the surface of the coin, if there is no pitting... probably not BD.

[areich]

The ones that I had did have pits underneath and the green was very soft like BD.

[SC]

That green can be anything from BD to the remnants of the patina after attack by certain environments.  Like Jiminey I have had several coins like this and many have been stable.  The only way to tell is likely to get it out of that container.  (Free the coin!)  Those containers can tap in moisture and promote BD in some cases. 

Once out you could start by brushing it with a regular toothbrush.

If the green remains on it then you are fine.  If large parts come off then you should put it on BD watch.  In that case I would keep brushing it to get as much of the green off.   You could then treat it, though I would probably leave it and keep checking on it.

Anyway, as to the type, this is a coin struck after Diocletian's coinage reform of 294.  It was a fraction of the large coin (the Nummus) and is sometimes called a Post-Reform Radiate (PRR).  On these denominations the Emperor continued to use the radiate bust of the earlier Antoniniani and Aureliani.  The rather thick, wide head makes me think it might be an issue from Alexandria.

Shawn

[ModernCoinTraitor]

otlichnik,

How many decades have you been attributing coins? I'm trying to figure out if I will live long enough to have a fraction of your skill.

[SC]

Thanks for the compliment.  I have been collecting about a decade.  But I was writing messages exactly like yours to other members about five or six years ago.  If you stick with the hobby a while you will be in the same boat in a few years.

Shawn