Tag Archives: artificial toning

Rainbow 1958 Mint Sets

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Unscrupulous sellers knowing the value of naturally toned coins sometimes swap out those gems and replace them with the same year/mint examples of lesser value. Usually you can tell what sets have been tampered with, either because of the stark toning contrast or wrong packaging, as in these examples:

The best way to check if your set contains the wrong boards is to go to the APMEX coin site and see the distinct packaging, whose paper or cardboard are responsible for specific toning patterns, sometimes unique to the impurities of the planchets of a particular year.

Of all the years, the high mintage 1958 Double Mint Set is among the most desirable because of the stunning natural toning, especially the Denver silver coins that have distinct rainbows with these shades of red, blue, green, gold, yellow and magenta:

The 1958 Philadelphia coins often have a purple/blue/magenta/amber toning, as in this example:

So when I see an eBay set with artificial coloring, like the one below, I know immediately not to buy, bid or otherwise inquire about the double mint set. Can you spot the chemically treated coins?

Let’s take a closer look:

Another red flag are partial sets. You have to know the mintages. Some sets feature 18 coins (1956), and others 22 coins (1955), 28 coins (1947-49) and 30 coins (1951-1954, 1957-58).

A few years ago you could find original toning in the 1958 and other double mint sets containing these mintages:

  • 1947 (5,000)
  • 1948 (60,00
  • 1949 (5,000)
  • No 1950
  • 1951 (8,654)
  • 1952 (11,499)
  • 1953 (15,538)
  • 1954 (25,599)
  • 1955 (49,656)
  • 1956 (45,475)
  • 1957 (32,324)
  • 1958 (50,314)

Retail prices for the low mintage sets (1947-49, 51-520 can range in the hundreds and thousands, as long as they have not been tampered with or doctored.

But the 1958 set with the largest mintage remains among the most desirable because of the rainbow tones. That is why unopened original sets command high prices, as this example:

In addition to selling and buying coins, APMEX has a useful post about detecting artificial v. natural toning:

APMEX warns against:

  • Toning that has bright colors, as you would find in a box of crayons.
  • Toning that appears to “float” on the surface, rather than having greater depth.
  • The toning that appears yellow-brown or smoky. (This indicates the use of cigar or cigarette smoke, common among artificially toned coins.)
  • Toning that occurs over hairline marks.

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Artificial Toning in Auctions and Bottom-Tier Slabs

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If you can’t tell real from artificial toning, you will waste your hobby funds on coins with artificial color. Worse, you’ll find these damaged coins in bottom-tier holders with auctioneers and sellers claiming the grades and designations are genuine. Let’s look at some examples with a few tips on how to identify these doctored lots.

Morgans minted in the 1890s are avidly sought after. That is why unscrupulous sellers tone sliders, scratched and cleaned coins and/or send them to a holdering company that overlooks these issues.

Example: Is this 1890-S Morgan worth $1,250?

PCGS lists such a coin at $1,300, providing that it is housed in the company’s holder. While PCGS, CAC and NGC holdered coins are meant to be traded, sight unseen, bottom-tier holders are not sold or traded in the same way. The coin above has been anodized with a mixture of water, sulfur and sodium hydroxide. The artificial toning is so thick it is difficult to see any hairlines or scratches on this coin.

This holdering company often hypes condition and overlooks flaws and doctored toning.

The 1890-S Morgan is a relatively scarce coin with a mintage of 8,230,373. Of course, you can believe the lower-tier holder company’s description and the seller’s estimated value. But you might want to brush up on grading coins.

Some people might pay $100-150 for such a coin, but it’s worth now is basically silver because the dollar has been doctored.

Here is an eBay example in another bottom holder with the seller proclaiming “monster” toning:

You can see without magnification that the surface of the dollar exhibits wear. It, too, has artificial toning and is silver melt, not worth the exaggerated $700.

Here is a HiBid example claiming this 1890-S dollar is MS65+ trending toward $2,400.

The above coin is artificially toned and cleaned, again, in our view, worth little more now than silver melt.

Just because a coin has deep toning, that doesn’t make it desirable. Here are eBay offerings from a seller who practiced using sulfuric chemicals and heat on a roll of silver eagles.

While 18 of the 20 here are obviously artificially toned, he comes up with two that had the right combination of heat and chemicals to pass for natural toning to the untrained eye:

Now compare these to two that PCGS actually holdered.

A veteran hobbyist can tell the difference immediately. But a newer collector might not and may bid hundreds of dollars for an artificially toned coin.

To tell the difference, consider these factors:

  • Intensity: Artificial toning often involves very bright deep blues, purples, and reds. 
  • Abrupt Change in Color: Natural toning shows smooth, continuous transitions between colors.
  • Obverse/Reverse Color Distribution: Chemical treatment often produces the same color patterns on obverse and reverse whereas natural toning usually differences on both sides of the coin.
  • “Floating” Toning: The colors may look like they are sitting on top of the coin’s surface rather than being embedded into the metal. 
  • Loss of Luster: Artificial toning processes can sometimes strip the coin of its natural metallic luster, resulting in a dull, non-shiny surface. 

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“Cleaned and Retoned” Silver Coins

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The main difference between a naturally toned coin and a cleaned and retoned coin concerns lies in surface originality, color progression, and the presence of underlying mint luster. Naturally toned coins develop their color over decades of slow, passive environmental exposure, preserving the coin’s original surface. Cleaned and retoned coins have had their original surface layers stripped away by abrasives or chemicals and then stored in cardboard, typically, or some other envelope that triggers toning.

The coin below is cleaned and retoned with significant flaws, including scratches on the cheek area, a prominent place for deductions in grading. The damage would be more prevalent without the toning, which often masks flaws.

The above coin was offered in an eBay auction as a monster rainbow coin. It does have that natural rainbow of gold, amber, red, green and blue hues. But those probably occurred after the 1883-O Morgan dollar was dipped and placed in an album long ago.

The difference between natural toning and cleaned and retoned concerns chemical reactions. Genuine toning is vibrant with colors blending like a rainbow in distinct patterns. Cleaned and retoned can have the same patterns, but the colors are washed out.

See the differences in these 1903 Morgan dollars:

Be especially careful when purchasing unholdered toned coins on eBay. Many of the offerings will be cleaned and retoned. See these three below:

If you are looking for more information about natural patina, see “Types of Toned Coins.”

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You can find more information about types, varieties, errors, grading, bidding and buying in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider buying or gifting the work for a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist blog. Thank you.