QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

QWAK,I just found a 1889 indian head penny that is green with age and a slight amount of crusty dirt but other wise seems unblemished to me!:s9:

I cleaned it up a bit by solking in for a fiew min. in a cap full of peroxide then gentile brushing with a soft bristle tooth brush.

Any sugestions as to how or IF I should continue with cleaning?:questionm

I have found other more worn pennies here dating back to 1863 but gave them away as gifts to colectors but this one is in the best condition I have found so far.

Any estimit of what it may be valued at?:dontknow:

the DUCK

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

Congratulations on your discovery. Was this a metal detector find? In order to value it we need to grade it, and to do that you would need to post some quality photos.

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

QWAK,gopher29,I have been working on a large project for many years now removing the dirt and over burden down about 24" to bed rock using a hose and gravity. I wash away the soil and put the rock/gravel in buckets and dump it in the drive way.

It is posable the aeria I am now working once was the location of --- you got it --- the old OUT HOUSE! :D

In any event there is no obvious damage to the coin so it was most likely lost not too long after it was minted.:D

It is sort of the old story of the LUCKEY guy who fell threw the floor of the OUT HOUSE and found a GOLD DOUBLE EAGLE on the bottom,I guess HE got here FIRST and just left the PENNY!:hahaha::haha::haha:

the DUCK

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

Hi there Gold Duck nice fined

The grade of a coin and it's rarity determine it's value. So as an example the 1889 is not a scarce cent. In grade (good) - The word Liberty in the head band on the bonnet if it is not visible its value is $1.35. In grade fine- Liberty mostly visible $1.90, and in grade extra fine- (Liberty sharp all other details sharp slight wear on ribbon with slight wear here and there Value $8.00, These values are about what a dealer would pay. :wink:

Year: 1889
Metal: 95% copper 5% tin and zinc
Mintage: 48,866,025

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

QWAK,Silver Gorilla,Except for the stuck on crud that should likely come off if cleaned properly I think I may have the $8.00 one!:D

Any advice on cleaning??:dontknow:

I guess REAL MONEY even if it aint GOLD or SILVER is worth a whole lot MORE than FACE VALUE! HE HE HE :s9:

I guess I will keep this penny and put it with the BABY 1/10 oz. GOLD EAGLES as they are about the same size.:wink:

It was a nice suprise and when I tell people I found it on the bottom of an old OUT HOUSE PIT it should be WORTH more to ME for the LAUGHFS!:hahaha::haha::haha:

the DUCK

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

Good find fo our fine Duck friend. I don't know about cleaning it, but if it's in good shape, it's a good coin to have regardless of current price.

Best O Luck to you.

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

As a general rule you should never clean a coin. However, if you must give in to the urge to clean it then I would suggest washing it gently in warm, soapy water or possibly just soaking it in olive oil. Anything more than that will cause damage to the coin and leave the coin with an unnatural, unattractive appearance.

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

The crusty stuff is crystallization.
Copper generally does not fare well in old outhouses.
I have a friend who loves working old outhouses for bottles.
Lots of husbands hid from their wives and drank their "hooch" and disposed of the evidence.

You will never totally get the coin back to true collectable status. The planchet has been altered by time and soil composition.
Probably worth 30% of an undamaged specimen as a space filler.

Let us know if you find an 1856 or 1877 cent

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

QWAK,I tried taking a picture to post but my old digital camera could not pick up the detales good enough. :(

As this was a very old homested dating back to way befor the cival war, I have found lots of stuff from bullets and buttons to rusty old traps and hand forged nails. What I have not found were Indian arrow heads etc. which I have heard are very common.

All the rock is sand stone and I have NEVER found even one fossel so I kind of figure that this was once the bottom of a very ancient ocean even befor there were larger shelled creachers who could have left impressions.

Humans are bairly a BLINK in time and yet we see our selves as so much more, I guess because WE got EGOS and that tends to blind us to the GREATER REALITY that WE are only TEMPORARY!:thinkey:

the DUCK

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

Watched a show on the Travel Channel a while back... "Cash and Treasures" I think it was.. Has some Hottie Hostess on there who does different things like pannin, diggin up precious stones ....
and in the particular episode that comes to mind, DIGGIN UP OLD LATRINE HOLES..


They Were huntin antique bottles... according to the show they used to toss bottles in the crapper....Apparantly finding the right ones in the right condition fetch big FRNs...

find any glass DUCK?

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

QWAK,JJ ShortStroke, Yep,Found lots of broken glass even one old medicin bottle with only a slight chip out of its top which was for a cork stoper.:wink: I gave it as a gift to an old friend who is a nurse clenition and loves antiques.

Most of the stuff in in the top 6" except ware there has been escavation.

I started cleaning out an old well several years back, it wend down over 16' in solid sand stone bed rock. After having worked with this sand stone even using modern hammer drill, I have great respect for who ever made THAT hole in the ground! :s9:

Shure wish I could find the old SILVER MINE that I am told is around here some ware and dates back to the native americans and I am told was SOoooooo rich that it could be smelted with just very hot fires from wood. Nature has long obliterated any surface signs of its existence but as the story goes it was producing SILVER of such high quality that after the cival war MINT BLOCKS headed for the Denver mint ware robed from the Butterfield stage and were used to make higher quality US SILVER DOLLARS as counter fits than were issued by the government!:D

the DUCK

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

Don't clean your coins, take your coins to a professional to do the cleaning. Professional dealers often offer a coin cleaning service using a method called "dripping" that should not be attempted by an amateur. If your coins are so corroded that the date and details cannot be determined, consult a professional for advice before attempting to clean the coins to avoid or minimize possible damage :wink: Copper is among the most chemically active of all coinage metals. When a copper coin is first struck it has a brilliant pale orange surface and turns brown when circulated. Copper coins tend to look worse after being cleaned and are more easily ruined than gold or silver coins. When absolutely necessary, clean dirty, green crusted, badly corroded copper coins without scrubbing them. Try soaking them in grape oil (or olive oil if grape oil is not available).



If you absolutely, positively must clean your discovered coins, you should clean them with the least harmful method that will give the desired results. Remember that excessively dirty or spotted coins, if not cleaned within a reasonable length of time, can eventually corrode and become damaged beyond repair. After selecting the method you will use, you should experiment on low-value coins before cleaning high-value coins. Do not be tempted to use harsh chemicals, vinegar, sulfuric acid, abrasive pastes, polishing cloths, metal brushes, rock tumblers, rotating tools, or impact devices which can result in smooth, shiny, metal slugs. :smokin:

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

QWAK,Silver Gorilla,Never would have thought of olive oil. Thanks.:shakehand:laugh:

So I guess a little touch up on the WIRE WHEEL and a fast BUFF is a NO NO? HE HE HE:wink::s9::sarc:

the DUCK

Re: QWAK,Guess what I just found in the mud? :)
 

The wire wheel works ok if you give it a little acetone. :D