Cleaning the Ancient Coins!

"Things to use in cleaning the coins..... "

(please click on thumbnails for a bigger picture)

Now that you know a little bit about the Ancient coins, let's take a look on things you might need to clean them. Keep in mind that this is how I clean mine, don't be afraid to adapt your own style, or try new things.

List of items I use:

Olive Oil or Distilled Water, Dental tools, pins and picks, Hot glue gun and glue (hi-temp), Dish Soap, Toothbrush, Large mounted magnifying glass, Magnifying loupe, nonskid shelving liner, Rubber or Cork mat, High-powered lamp, TSP (tri-sodium Phosphate), Strainer, Bowls, and last but not least... The Uncleaned Coins!!!

1. OLIVE OIL OR DISTILLED WATER:

You really have a choice here. This depends on what you are comfortable with or what you have readily available. Both of these work well for soaking coins and both have their drawbacks. If you soak the coins in the distilled water, the water has to be changed every day, impurities from the coins will mix in with the water and make it lose its effectiveness. Olive Oil, on the other hand, needs to be changed about every 3 days or when the oil starts to get cloudy. Either way, both of these are great for soaking the coins, I mostly use the Olive Oil.

2. DENTAL TOOLS, PINS AND PICKS:

I have a variety of tools that I use to clean my coins. Depending on whether the dirt is thick, or if the coin is heavily encrusted, will depend on what I use to clean them. I love using the large sewing needles the best but this is going to be your preference as to what works best for you. Dental tools are great also and give you a handle for your needle. If you are unsure about using these, you can always use the plastic toothpicks, wooden toothpicks, sharpened bamboo sticks, or anything sharp you are comfortable with.

3. HOT GLUE GUN AND GLUE (hi-temp):

I use the hot glue method on coins that are obviously very heavily encrusted, to take off layers, or at the end of the cleaning, to get the little specs of dirt that don't seem to want to come out. This method is also great for getting the dirt and stuff out of the areas between the letters on the coin!

4. DISH SOAP:

For washing the coins in the beginning!!!

5. TOOTHBRUSH:

I prefer this over the soft brass brush. This will be used several times at several stages and a great use for those that you were going to throw out!

6. LARGE MOUNTED MAGNIFYING GLASS:

This will allow you to see the fine detail on the coin as you are cleaning it. It is not required but highly recommended! You can pick up one, like in my picture, for about $12 at RadioShack.

7. MAGNIFYING LOUPE:

Again, just like the mounted magnifying glass, not required but lets you see the letters and detail to help you attribute the coin.

8. NONSLIP SHELVING LINER:

I use this on the bottom of my mats or anything that I don't want to move, see pic in section 9!

9. RUBBER OR CORK MAT:

I use these for setting the coins on when cleaning. They give a cushion for the coin, a little stability when cleaning, and protect you table top in case you slip with a needle or something.

10. HIGH-POWERED LAMP:

A high-powered light is a must to see the detail on the coin while cleaning or attributing it. The Halogen I have in the picture is about $20 at Sears and comes with many attachments to use.

11. TSP (TRI-SODIUM PHOSPHATE):

This is great for cleaning the coins after soaking them in olive oil. The TSP breaks up the oil, as well as the dirt, and makes cleaning the coin a whole lot easier!

12. STRAINER:

Any run of the mill strainer will do. It makes it easier to control the coins, especially when you have a lot, when washing them as a group.

13. BOWLS:

Many uses for this! Mostly for the TSP, oil and stuff.

14. THE COINS:

Well...... of course!!!!

Now that we have everything we need to start cleaning, let's go to the next page and get to it!!!

<-- PREVIOUS PAGE    NEXT PAGE -->