Need help with identification of coin just found on Key West!

[aquaflow1]

I am new to this site, but it seems that you are deemed to be the expert on shipwreck coins on this site and I have a question for you. While in Key West on 11/4/12, I found a coin on the southern shore of Key West, actually on the beach near the high tide level, in front of the Casa Marina Resort Hotel. I can include photos of it as it was initially, and then after slight soaking and slight rubbing with baking soda, then later soaking it on a piece of foil in hot water with washing soda. After a lot of research and controversy about cleaning it or not and various methods, it seemed that both of these were relatively safe. However, I still can't identify the markings and nobody I've showed this to in Austin can either, nor is anyone an expert in shipwreck coins. I've also contacted several other people and sent photos, but the encrustation with coral is still preventing identification. I am reluctant to touch it more than necessary, but am not sure how to see the markings if it is not cleaned! It is currently in a jar of distilled water, hope that is ok. I've read the pros and cons of electrolysis and various acids.Any advice you can give me on this would be appreciated. If this needs to be professionally cleaned, any reference you could give me would be great.

I am wondering, also, what you think are the chances that this could be one of the Spanish reale silver cobs, perhaps a half reale? I understand that the effect of the brief trip of Hurricane Sandy near the Keys was causing some various coins to be washed up. This one is rather small, less than 1 inch in diameter. It seems to be silver and I realize that both the weight and the size can be diminished due to time in salt water and various factors there. Would this be the most likely of the coins to wash upn that location, in your opinion? Anyway, I am just curious what others may have found nearby, close to that time. One person that I emailed was treasureguide@comcast.net, who stated this, "In Key West it could be almost anything from a coin from a galleon to a recent dime or even a foreign coin from anywhere around the world. Very long and active history there. That is what makes it difficult to venture a guess."

I was told to contact the Numismatic Conservation Society, which I did, but they said they rarely got shipwreck coins and it was possible that even if sent there for conservation, they would still not be able to identify it. Of course, they did not share their secret for conservation cleaning! Not sure this would be worthwhile. It seems to me that I need to find a shipwreck coin expert and you seem to be it! :-)

Here are both sides, before and after the minor cleaning. I have more from different angles, if I need to post those, as well.

if you can't help, perhaps you know someone on this site or elsewhere, who can assist. If it is still impossible to be identified, then should I keep trying to clean it myself.. and how? Or send it to a professional for conservation? And then who would then be best to identify it? I really appreciate any advise, opinions, or resources that any of you can give me!

Thank you so much!

:-) Karen

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Diving for Pleasure and Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[stevemc]

Hard to say what it is. Looks to be modern, maybe a penny or dime. Try cleaning it with acid, muratic acid found at pool stores is good. That is usual shipwreck coin cleaning method. It wont hurt copper or silver coins. Let us know how it cleans up.

 

[Bum Luck]

What's the measurement?

Take a picture of it right next to a ruler. That'll help us.

 

[aquaflow1]

Thanks for the info so far! Is it absolutely safe to clean a treasure coin, what certainly seems to be silver, with muriatic acid, if the dilution and immersion times are done correctly? I keep getting a diversity of opinions! Here is a photo of the size of the coin. As you can see, it is under 1 inch in diameter. Does this give any of you more information? I appreciate your help!

Thanks,

Karen

 

[Mackaydon]

It has the diameter of a US cent.

 

[Terry Soloman]

Looks like a penny. Drop it in Olive oil for a week, then try and clean it up a little.

 

[Diver_Down]

It looks like a treasure Lincoln cent. Based on the corrosion, it looks like the zincoln variety. My copper cents never come up with that much corrosion.

 

[aquaflow1]

Thanks to all of you for your replies!

Here is a progress note.. much to my surprise, this now seems certain to be made of copper! I am still in the process of cleaning it by the least caustic means.. alternating between rubbing with a baking soda paste, a brief soak in alternatively, lemon juice and vinegar. I added salt to the vinegar the last time, which seems to do the most good. Am now putting it back into the distilled water solution with washing soda and a layer of aluminum foil. I became a bit paranoid to try the muriatic acid after the post about it possibly being a zinc penny, as I saw that acid dissolves zinc.

So, now, another question.. Were there any copper coins likely to wash up on Key West?? I started researching this but have not yet found an answer. Any thoughts?

Thanks again!

:-) Karen

 

[aquaflow1]

p.s. I did put it in olive oil, briefly, maybe a couple of hours, before I again tried the cleaning methods mentioned above. I can leave it longer, if that is beneficial..

 

[Terry Soloman]

Lincoln Penny.

 

[aquaflow1]

Just a plain ole' Lincoln penny? With virtually no value? If so, bummer! Thanks..

 

[aquaflow1]

Any chance it is a wheat penny or has any quality of being rare? Should I just go ahead and clean it with muriatic acid at this point? What about the post that said copper pennies never had this much encrustation? And I had also read that copper pennies usually were greenish, not black, as mine was initially? Just curious!

Thanks!

Karen

 

[Terry Soloman]

Just a plain ol' "Zincoln" penny. Sorry!

 

[aquaflow1]

This may be my last posting. I finally got brave enough to go ahead and try a rather weak Muriatic acid solution, put in twice for under 2 minutes each time, then rinsed and baking soda paste applied. Wow! I never dreamed what happened would happen. To me, it looks like you are right, Terry and Diver_Down. I'll attach my most recent pics, but to me, it looks like there was just a thin copper coating, which has now almost disappeared (which I don't understand after it was said often that muriatic acid would NOT hurt copper!) and just has a blackish silverish tint, which I am guessing is zinc. I think you can almost see in the photos how it looks like the copper is almost peeling back. So, I am assuming that ya'll are correct and it is zinc with just a copper coating, correct? But why did it have a blackish coating originally, not green? Was that due to the underlying zinc?

I still cannot see any markings. Now have it soaking in olive oil. Is this is what I should do? I do have to admit that it has been alot of fun trying to solve this mystery, even if it didn't turn out to be valuable. I may still frame it, just for the fun of it all! :-)

Thanks to all of you! If there's anything I'm concluding improperly, please let me know!

 

[Terry Soloman]

It's the oxidation in the saltwater, and the chemical reaction that draws the sand to it to form the crustation. It happens rapidly with newer pennies. Maybe it was dropped by a Cuban guy from Miami. You can frame it as "Spanish Copper from the Keys."

 

[aquaflow1]

Thanks, Terry! I appreciate the explanation and that is a good way to look at it! Plus, I know alot more than I did about Spanish shipwrecks near Key West in the 1600's.. has all been quite interesting!!

:-) Karen

 

[Bum Luck]

Zinc and aluminum are very active elements, and thus corrode easily in electrically active salt water. Dead giveaway.

 

[aquaflow1]

Thanks!

Thanks so much.. makes sense and has certainly been a learning experience!

:-) Karen

 

[Bum Luck]

Hey - the main lesson is to dig, and keep digging!

 

[stevemc]

Bum Luck, aluminum doesnt corrode rapidly in saltwater. We find the 40+ year old pull tabs all the time, daily, and they are in very good condition. Zinc will corrode very rapidly if near a less noble metal. Zinc is low on the nobility scale. There are WW2 airplanes in the ocean that the aluminum is in good shape.