My 'gentle' cleaning of a Roman coin went a bit too well

I found what looked like a crusty old coin in a field near Hadrian's Wall last month. I read online that a soft toothbrush and distilled water was safe, so I gave it a go. After about 20 minutes of careful brushing, the green patina came off... and so did all the detail, leaving me with a smooth, blank metal disc. Turns out I'd scrubbed a modern 10 pence piece that was just really dirty! Has anyone else ever 'cleaned' a find into being worthless?

4 comments

4 Comments

dakotab931mo ago

Yikes, that's a painful lesson.

wyatt_mitchell262mo ago

Been there, just use a magnifying glass next time.

the_linda2mo ago

I used to think a magnifying glass was overkill for modern coins. Then I spent a whole afternoon trying to spot a tiny mint mark on a 2019 quarter. The glass showed it in two seconds flat.

riverw172mo ago

Oh man, that's a classic. A magnifying glass helps, but honestly, sometimes you just can't tell until you start. At least it was a modern coin and not the real deal.