Was this coin a PROOF ?

[SWANNY 25]

I have a very nice double florin, which I think may have been a proof , what do you think ?

[VickySilver 836]

Pretty well struck and PL surfaces. Rim not super sharp. There are some very proofy looking currency strikes from this era however. Can we see the obverse? 

[SWANNY 25]

The obverse side of this coin looks like it was just minted, the other side is a different story

 

Edited January 13, 2016 by SWANNY

[Rob 3,152]

That looks like it has been polished

 

[SWANNY 25]

That's what I thought, its a real shame as the obverse is stunning 

[Bronze & Copper Collector 413]

On 1/12/2016 at 3:00 PM, SWANNY said:

I have a very nice double florin, which I think may have been a proof , what do you think ?

Once a proof, always a proof..

It may not be mint state anymore, but even if it worn down to a blank disk, it would still be a proof...

Proof is not a condition, it is a type of strike.. 

That is to say; there are proof strikes, specimen strikes, circulation strikes, etc....

What a proof strike would be, if it had seen circulation and was worn or damaged, or was just dropped or mishandled  and damaged, is an Impaired Proof....

 

[Stuntman 264]

3 hours ago, Rob said:

That looks like it has been polished

 

Slight thread hijack, but what long term effects does polishing have on a coin, assuming the polishing hasn't caused much, if any, field damage?  Will the coin naturally tone/retone over time?

The reason I ask is that I have an 1842 shilling that looks very shiny under artificial light.  Perhaps it has also been polished.  Coin grades as GVF and there doesn't appear to be any obvious hairlines or swirls - it's just rather bright and shiny (as opposed to lustrous) but is otherwise rather nice.

[Gary1000 41]

13 hours ago, Stuntman said:

Slight thread hijack, but what long term effects does polishing have on a coin, assuming the polishing hasn't caused much, if any, field damage?  Will the coin naturally tone/retone over time?

The reason I ask is that I have an 1842 shilling that looks very shiny under artificial light.  Perhaps it has also been polished.  Coin grades as GVF and there doesn't appear to be any obvious hairlines or swirls - it's just rather bright and shiny (as opposed to lustrous) but is otherwise rather nice.

Could be dipped then would not get any polish marks.

[Stuntman 264]

Cheers Gary.  In any case, I'm hoping the coin will dull down a bit over time.

[SWANNY 25]

Thanks for the help

 

Just one last question , how do you tell if a coin is a proof ?

[SWANNY 25]

What's a proof coin?

   A newly minted proof coin is also Un-circulated, however it is the way it is made that causes a difference in appearance and qualifies it as a "proof".  To understand this, let's look at how coins are made.  Coins are produced when two dies strike a blank piece of metal with tremendous force. One die is engraved with the front (obverse) design for the coin.  The other die has the back (reverse) coin design on it.  

 

A proof coin is made with

a specially polished and treated die!

   By treating the die in a special way, the coins it produces have a different appearance.  Modern technology allows the high points on the coin design to be acid treated (on the die).  The background (field) design of the coin die is polished, resulting in a mirror-like look on the coin it strikes. This gives the finished coin a frosted look (frosting) on the raise parts of the design, with a mirror like finish on the background. This contrasting finish is often called "cameo".  (See picture above.) On some older coins a cameo appearance is quite rare. The attribute "CAM", when added to a coin's description, means cameo appearance. "DCAM" means deep cameo, and indicates the cameo appearance is strong and easy to observe.

 

Proof coins are struck twice, or more!

   Not only are proofs made using specially treated dies, each coin is struck two or more times by the coin die. By striking it more than once the metal is forced into all the crevices of the die, thereby giving a very fine detail to the image on the coin.  This fine detail does not appear on some non-proof coins. 

 

I think this covers it................................