HOW COINS ARE RUINED AND RESCUED

BY SCOTT A. TRAVERS

1794 half cent with surface corrosion, a byproduct of copper’s exposure to moisture which served as a catalyst.

Photo courtesy PCGS.

Protection and preservation are the common allies of collectors and investors alike, and deterioration and damage are the common enemies. So be forewarned: You’ll never achieve your objectives, whether you are a collector or investor, unless you take care of your coins.

A collector once came to me with a group of coins that once had been - and still should have been - truly incredible. The group contained a Liberty Seated half dollar with spectacular cameo contrast and beautiful toning, several highly desirable and scarce-date Indian cents, and a high-grade, scarce-date Barber dime.

All of the coins were well preserved - or at least the client thought they were, since all had been stored in nice, soft vinyl flips. The trouble was, those flips were made of PVC - polyvinyl- chloride - and the coins had all corroded while in storage.

The moral of the story is that a coin holder costing just a couple of cents can easily ruin coins costing many thousands of dollars.