NCS Conservation Showcase: 1936 Norfolk 50-cent Piece

Posted on 8/19/2014

PVC coin holders are not intended for long-term storage and often leave residues on coins. And these residues aren't just unattractive — they can be destructive.

BEFORE CONSERVATION
NCS Conservation Showcase NCS Conservation Showcase
Click to enlarge
Click to enlarge
 
AFTER CONSERVATION
NCS Conservation Showcase NCS Conservation Showcase
Click to enlarge
Click to enlarge

Using coin holders containing the plasticizer PVC is never a good idea for long-term storage. The PVC chemical can and often does leach out of the plastic holder to develop thick green residues that are both unattractive and destructive to the coin surface. This process is hastened by the presence of humidity in the air.

This 1936 Norfolk Commemorative Half Dollar was submitted to NCS from a particularly humid part of the country to have an ugly green residue removed from the surface. This kind of PVC residue will cause a coin to be returned to a submitter ungraded by NGC making its removal even more imperative. Luckily the PVC residue had not caused significant surface damage and after the NCS conservators were able to remove the material the coin was able to grade very well with NGC.

NCS is an independent member of the Certified Collectibles Group


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