Catalog Number: 7128

Serial Number:  82490315

Grade: Mint State 60

VAM:  20 - Doubled 18

VSS Number: 0

Comments:  The obverse of this coin on first glance just looks dirty or discolored.  But when you get to the reverse you see that is has an iridescent quality that can be associated with prolonged exposure to moisture.  We believe this to be bag toning.

Once the toning is removed one can see that the coin is devoid of major marks and it may have lost a grade or two from lack of eye appeal.

As mentioned above, the reverse of this coin just speaks to bag toning where a slow moisture exposure created the multitude of colors and reflective quality.

We need only visualize the working and storage conditions in New Orleans in the late 1800s to understand how this would happen.  High humidity and heat alone could have produced the color.

Even though the coin is dark, the color when magnified is probably more early stage toning with lighter blues, yellows, and a little magenta.