My First Coin: 1820 Coronet Liberty Head

[HI-McDunnogh]

In the few months I've been metal detecting, I've been lucky enough to dig a few Civil War sites and save some bullets, but today I nailed my first coin.

After researching it, it appears to be an 1820 Coronet Liberty Head. It was about 8" deep in the mountains of WV at an old home site. It does have a small hole drilled in the top just over the liberty head (is there any historical significance to drilling a hole?), but I'm super happy about the dig none-the-less.

I'd like to clean it up a bit more without ruining the patina too much. Google says it's made out of copper. Will a week or two of vinegar and a light scrub do the trick?

 

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[Squirrel322]

Very nice coin!

The hole was drilled so the coin could be hung, probably worn on a necklace.

 

[Ia.FurTrade]

Congrat's on the nice LC!
In my opinion any further cleaning will leave your coin in worse shape.......BUT, it's yours so if you want to clean more.......have at it!

Iowa Dale

 

[bologna321]

Really cool, I'd leave it as is ....

 

[Argentium]

I wouldn't touch that patina ! A week or two in vinegar will yield a stripped copper disc that looks like it has been micro sandblasted - disaster ! I like the hole and the fact that the edge of the coin has been filed or hammered , lots of character !!

 

[Mikebk03]

Congrats!

 

[Icewing]

I once found an 1841 seated liberty dime that I showed to the head archeologist for my area. He said it was almost certainly owned by a slave, and it turns out they had done a dig on an unmarked slave cemetery in the field on the other side of the road from where I found it.
I used to have a link to a good article on holes coins that I will try to find again. Apparently it was common for slaves to punch holes in coins and wear them.

 

[Whyme]

Nice find! I just made my holed dateless LC into a necklace. Wearing it for the first time today

 

[smokeythecat]

That's a nice find. Do not clean it at all. It is as good as it will probably get. Chemicals will eat what detail is there totally away. If you want to, you can get a set of the Andre's pencials, which have tips of brass and compressed steel wire centers and mechanically clean them. Or use wooden toothpicks.

 

[washingtonian]

Wow. That's a heck of a first coin. Big congrats!

 

[A2coins]

put it in a nice case well done thats a great first coin

 

[HI-McDunnogh]

Big thanks for the kind words folks!

Sounds like the consensus is that any further cleaning will do more damage than good, so she'll stay as is.

 

[Rookster]

Heck of a nice fund.Congrats

 

[tomhighland]

Congrats and welcome to the site. I don't clean my finds other than a light gentle toothpick after it has dried well. Anything more normally removes detail or stains the coin. I learned this the hard way, be happy with it as it is.

 

[Icewing]

I finally found the link I was looking for about slaves wearing coins around their neck or ankle as medallions but all I got a "404 page not found" on the University website.

 

[Professor of Engineering]

Nice find!

IMHO: I would not clean it any further...old coppers many times get worse with more cleaning!

 

[texjim]

Awesome job. I would leave it be... Congrats in the beautiful Copper.

 

[pa-dirt_nc-sand]

Very nice! Congrats!!