My first Half Dime!!!

[southernbandit]

I have found my very first half dime. You can make out the stars and you can just make out the lady on the rock. My question is how can I safely clean it this coin and then I post a picture of it.
Thank You.
Southernbandit

 

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[BuckleBoy]

1. Soak the coin for a few hours in water if there is still dirt clinging to it.

2. Take a camel's hair, ultra-soft, make-up brush and use this to coax the dirt gently from the surface of the coin under hard running water. I use this procedure for all the silver coins I find. This reduces your likelihood of leaving small "polish" marks (commonly called "whizz" marks in the numismatic community) on the surface of your coin. Oh, and make sure the plug is in the drain.

Never "field-clean" a silver coin. (This includes "spit-polishing" or simply rubbing a freshly recovered silver coin with your thumb to see what it is.) The higher grade a recovered coin is, the more damage can be done to its value and appearance.

Hope this helps, and I look forward to the photos!

Regards,

Buckleboy

 

[southernbandit]

Thanks Buckleboy,
Most of the silver coins I have found just using a little soap and water they clean right up.
But this one has a dark almost black coating on the side with the lady. I wasn't even sure it was a coin
it was so small. And I am guilty of (spit- polishing) well actually I licked it and then I could see the stars and
new it was something. If I would have looked just a little futher in the forum I would have seen the section
on coin cleaning. I believe there was a old house in this area I had even found some old bricks in the ground.
But nobody remembers a house in this area at all. It's just been so hot here in North Alabama it's been hard to
get out and do any metal detecting, temps all last week were in the 100's and the ground is hard and dry but I
will keep looking.
Thanks Again,
Bandit

 

[BuckleBoy]

Sounds like you have an oxidized coin there. Fortunately I have never unearthed an oxidized silver. Just doesn't happen due to our soil type here. Somone will know what to do. I would hesitate to use electrolysis on it, since I'm sure someone will suggest that to you as an option. There has to be something chemically that one could do to remove the oxidation without damaging the silver, but I have no chemistry background and unfortunately I have no clue on this one.

Buckleboy