Methods for applying patina to copper coins. Available ways to self-patina coins after cleaning How to age a coin at home

This photo shows silver items covered with natural patina: a silver chain, coin silver, crosses, a silver pendant and various silver fragments for silver jewelry.

The formation of a patina on the surface of a silver product is a natural aging process of silver. Patinated silver has its own charm and looks like a bride wearing a veil.

What is a patina on silver?

Patina on silver coins can be of various colors and shades.


From the point of view of a chemist, the patina on silver is oxidation, presented as a coating on the surface of silver and is similar to rust on iron. Patina on silverware can be natural or artificial. It can be of various colors and shades: gray, dark, brown, yellow, green, crimson, turquoise and black. For example, silver items covered with a black patina have probably been in contact with traces of sulfur in the composition of hydrogen sulfide or with amino acids containing sulfur formed during the decomposition of organic matter.

Is patina on silver good or bad?

The patina that forms naturally on silver products is the result of a long aging of silver, but aging in good conditions. Properly applied patina on silver products gives them a special charm, and the coating itself indirectly emphasizes their authenticity and uniqueness. A beautifully applied patina on silver items indicates that the item was stored correctly and carefully. Experienced numismatists, who are well versed in silver, believe that the patina on silver products is the accumulated life experience of the product and its soul.

Should one be afraid of patina on silverware?

It has been observed that experienced collectors of antique silver value the patina of the ages more than novice numismatists, who prefer the brilliance of silver. Some collectors are afraid of products covered with patina. Silver products still oxidize over time and become covered with a patina of various colors and shades. This is one of the beautiful features of silver products that distinguishes them from modern products. It is necessary for novice collectors or just lovers of silver to simply learn to appreciate the dignity of these products and love them.

What is the best patina on silver?

Antique silver with a patina and unusual hallmarks on items different from modern hallmarks is valued much more than sparkling modern bright white silver. Not every patina can be beautiful, if it falls on a silver product in uneven spots or stripes, then such silver products are considered affected by the external environment.

Correct and natural patina is the result of a long-term oxidation of a silver product, which takes a very long time, under the influence of various chemicals present in small quantities in the atmospheric air. As a rule, such a chemical compound is hydrogen sulfide.

A patina that looks unattractive is usually the result of the contact of silver products with the chemical compounds of the environment in which they lived. Natural patina protects silver from further oxidation and destruction. After the patina evenly lays down on the silver surface, further oxidation stops.

Oxidized silver

Today, the method of silver oxidation is often used, that is, applying a thin oxide film to its surface, after which it tarnishes. Such oxidized silver outwardly resembles the look of antique silver. It is durable and has corrosion resistance. Oxidized silver as a type of silver represents a new style in art. Jewelers cover silver with an oxide film to diversify monotonous silver products. Outwardly, such silver looks attractive and can be a great gift for family and friends.

Oxidation of pure silver

Pure silver is a metal that is inherently inactive. It is very difficult to interact with oxygen. In order for oxygen to dissolve in silver, certain conditions are necessary. In order to dissolve oxygen in silver, it must be strongly heated or melted. Under normal conditions, pure silver practically does not dissolve the oxygen contained in the atmospheric air.

Oxidation of silver alloys

Silver alloys containing, as a rule, copper oxidize much faster than pure silver. Therefore, you can often see how low-grade silver is covered with a multi-colored patina, which can look very attractive on the outside. The higher the content of copper in the silver alloy, the more intense the oxidation process. Oxidation of silver is a process of metal destruction, but with its uniform oxidation, when a patina is formed, it protects it from aging and stops the further corrosion process.

Artificial silver patina

This photo shows silver coins with an artificially applied patina.

Artificial silver patina is an attempt to create a patina in a very short period of time with the aim of obtaining a strange silver look. There are many ways to get an artificial patina. For example, for patination of silver coins, several methods of applying patina will be used: baking a silver coin in the oven, sometimes inside a potato; aging in a sealed container with crushed match heads; burning with a blowtorch; soaking in a thin layer of acids, bleaches and sulfur-containing chemicals.

Other ways of artificial imposition of a patina are associated with a longer oxidative process. Silver coins are kept on the windowsill under the scorching rays of the sun, imitating the process of natural patination, or they are simply sealed in a regular paper envelope with sulfur added. Artificial silver patina, unlike natural patina, is considered a significant drawback for silver products. Despite this, there are silver connoisseurs who see artificial patina as a great advantage.

Silver is a beautiful noble metal. Products from it are simply mesmerizing - they shine, shimmer in the light and look like a real work of art. But as soon as you take silver in your hands or put on jewelry from it, a rapid oxidation process begins. The metal tarnishes and loses a fair amount of its appeal.

Therefore, many people prefer to darken silver. On the one hand, such products become similar to antiques covered with a touch of patina. On the other hand, shiny silver with dark patches looks more attractive.

Blackening and oxidation

How to darken silver at home? There are two ways to do this: oxidation and traditional blackening. And the difference between these two methods is enormous.

During oxidation, silver is covered with a thin film of oxides, so the product receives a dark coating. But the coating is short-lived and easily erased. The difference is especially noticeable when cleaning - if you polish oxidized silver, then it becomes covered with a grid of lighter spots.

Blackening is the coating of a metal surface with a mixture of silver, copper and lead sulfides. Such a coating is resistant to abrasion and completely disappears only with prolonged boiling or when exposed to acid.

Blackening on an industrial scale is carried out in various ways. But, as a rule, they all represent the application of a powder from a mixture of silver, copper and lead sulfides to the product. The patina is fixed by the “dry” or “wet method” - in the first case, the product is fired after applying the powder, in the second case, the metals are diluted with water to a creamy state, and after applying the mixture, the silver is heated in a muffle furnace.

If we talk about how you can generally darken silver, then experts distinguish the following methods:

• galvanic - this technology provides for the presence of special equipment, therefore it is not used at home;
• mechanical - using graphite;
• chemical - the most reliable method of blackening.

mechanical method

How to darken silver at home with graphite? This is a fairly simple technology, and its result is due to the same processes that occur with lunar metal over time. That is, particles of dust stick to it and tightly "eat" into the recesses. With the help of graphite, you can simply speed up this process.

For blackening, the products are lubricated with a mixture of graphite powder, iron oxide and turpentine, diluted to a mushy state. Then they wait for complete drying and wipe the silver with a soft cloth. The older the product, and the more uneven its surface, the more noticeable the result will be. But in general, such blackening is less durable than that obtained by a chemical or galvanic method.

Blackening with an egg

How to darken silver at home with an egg? The technique is quite simple and you do not need to buy any additional funds. Everything you need is already in the fridge. So, for blackening with an egg, you must perform the following steps:

1. Boil an egg or two if there are a lot of silver jewelry.
2. Separate the protein - it can be eaten, since it does not participate in the creation of a noble plaque. All the substances necessary for blackening are concentrated in the yolk.
3. The yolks must be placed in an airtight container and crushed.
4. Next, you need to place the silver in the same container, but so that the metal does not touch the yolks, otherwise the blackening process will be too fast and uneven. Therefore, decorations must either be hung or laid out on a wire rack, in the most extreme case, isolated with a paper towel.
5. Products should be left with yolks in a tightly sealed container for a day. If after 24 hours the result does not look too impressive, then you can leave the silver for another 1-2 days.
6. Take out the products and wash them with soap.
7. Polish all protrusions with a soft cloth.

Use of iodine

How to blacken silver at home with iodine? When using this substance, the product must first be cleaned. Then apply an iodine solution with a cotton swab or a cotton swab and put the silver to dry best under direct sunlight.

When the metal darkens, it needs to be cleaned with toothpaste - it will replace a mild abrasive. After cleaning, the bulges will shine, and the recesses will remain darkened. If the result is far from perfect, then the procedure must be repeated as many times as necessary.

The disadvantages of this technology are obvious: this blackening method is suitable for embossed products, but is not suitable for jewelry with a smooth surface.

Sulfuric ointment

You can quickly and effectively darken silver with sulfuric ointment. This is a drug that is mainly used to combat scabies pathogens, both in humans and animals. Therefore, it is sold both in a veterinary and in a regular pharmacy.

Sulfur ointment is thick, yellow in color and has a rather unpleasant odor. It must be applied to the product, and then heated to a fluid state with a hair dryer. After the ointment becomes more liquid, it can be more accurately distributed on the surface of the silver. When heated, it will be seen how the metal acquires a rich black-blue or purple color. After the product can be wiped dry, if necessary, the procedure can be repeated.

Also at home, in order to darken silver, they use "sulphurous liver" - a sintered mixture of sulfur and soda, which is thrown into water with silver. But at home, this blackening technique is not recommended, since hydrogen sulfide, a dangerous gas with an unpleasant odor, will be released in the process.

How to clean blackened silver?

Applying a dark coating is much easier than removing it later. In order to get rid of blackening, you will have to make a lot of efforts, and most likely, you will turn to specialists for help.

But if you need to clean blackened silver, while maintaining a noble dark coating, then such a procedure will require special care. First of all, you need to abandon the brushes, and use only soft cloths for polishing. So the relief will remain darkened, and the bulges will be shiny. You can use toothpaste as an abrasive. The blackened product must not be boiled or cleaned with caustic substances.

And in cases where you give a pated piece of jewelry to a workshop for cleaning, you must warn the jeweler that you need to preserve the noble patina.

Hello dear readers. In the next article, we will tell you what coin patination is and how to do it. Cleaning and patination of coins are almost always connected with each other. Often, after the cleaning process, we get an unnatural shine of the coin or an unpleasant shade of color. “Now cut off half of the initial price,” forum experts grumble, examining your freshly cleaned copy. To return the coin to its usual form, a means for patinating coins or pointing the patina manually will help. Coin patination methods depend on the metal with which we have to work.

patination theory

The word "patina" seems to us primordially Russian, like "old" or "homeland", but it came to us from the Italian language. It appears due to a chemical reaction that transforms the surface of the coin. On silver or copper, the patina looks beautiful, while the patina on an aluminum coin is a cloudy film, which is why such specimens lose value. Spotted or partial patina also does not add to the charm of the coin. Therefore, the patina that disfigures the appearance of the coin is removed. It should be remembered that patina is part of the coin. If the oxidation processes have affected the deep layers, then after cleaning, instead of a coin, we will get a thin plate with shapeless ruts instead of a pattern. But even well-preserved coins can look unsightly after cleaning. This is especially true of copper coins, which take on a reddish color. However, it is possible to restore the appearance of undisturbed antiquity to the coin. For this, patination is used - the process of inducing an artificial patina.

Availability of patina guidance

It seems to an unprepared collector that in order to restore a patina, one must be almost a medieval alchemist or work in a large chemical laboratory. This is not true! Most types of patina are applied in simple ways using readily available ingredients. Despite the fact that the patination of coins is the application of an additional layer that gives the surface of the specimen a beautiful color, the defects of the coin induced patina won't hide. Dark spots, ruts, nicks, smudges, etc. will remain in place, they will only change color. According to experienced collectors, artificial patina will not add anything to the price of a coin. But the patina, induced by experienced hands, is no different from the natural one, and the coin acquires a very attractive appearance in the eyes of potential buyers. The processes of inducing patina for different metals are fundamentally different. Simply put, there is no universal method. Let's look at some.

Patination of copper coins

There are many ways to put a patina on copper. The method using manganese and copper sulfate is very popular. If there is only a standard package (3 grams) of manganese, then take 10 grams of copper sulfate per half liter of water. If manganese is taken in the amount of five grams, copper sulfate will need 20 grams per liter. The solution is heated to 90 degrees. When the desired temperature is reached, we place the coins in the solution. The temperature should be controlled by heating the solution and periodically turning the coins over. The result: a wash-resistant bright brown patina. Pay attention to the toxicity of vitriol and take the measures required when working with toxic substances.

Fixer (sodium hyposulfite) puts a patina on clean and fat-free coins. We keep the coins in the solution from 10 seconds to half a minute. Removed coins are wiped with a cloth. When the coin dries, patination will give it a bronze color. The easiest way is to heat the coin in the flame of a gas stove burner when the test specimen turns light brown. Copper plating is also a simple option, although less popular. Patination of coins with sulfuric ointment is also not a difficult way. Work must be carried out in water. Rubbed with ointment, the coin gets a patina of dark brown or grayish color. For clarification, after a forty-minute pause, the coin is first polished with a napkin, and then washed with a soapy brush. Experts do not recommend sulfuric ointment, but for experiments with simple methods, it is quite suitable.

Patination of silver coins

Silver is advised to be patinated with ammonia (an ordinary vial of ammonia). For half an hour, the coin is placed in the freezer. Fixing the experimental specimen with tweezers by the edge, hold it from a minute to three over an open bubble. As soon as the coin acquires the desired gray color. Then we wash the coin in water and dry it. For those who don't want to mess around with ammonia, a simple hard-boiled chicken egg will do. It is cut into pieces and covered with a glass jar along with a coin placed on edge. Patination of coins in this way is fast: the change in color is visible to the eye. However, if the color does not suit you, it will not be easy to wash off the induced patina.

When everything happens by itself

If you put a patina on bronze coins, then you can use methods suitable for silver. But there is a way to patinate bronze coins in a natural way. To do this, bronze coins must be constantly exposed to sunlight. The sun helps to get a beautiful and even patina on bronze in one and a half to two years. Of course, this method cannot be called an express method, but there is no need to wait half a century either. Returning to copper, remember the advice to keep the cleaned coins in a jar of matches. The results are mixed, but you can experiment on inexpensive copies. At home, they try patination with wood. Certain types of wood release tannins, which contribute to the production of "cabinet" patina.

The protective film on metal is called patina. The patination of the coins gives them the look of antiquity. We can say that this is artificial aging. Often, patination is applied after cleaning the coins, since the native protective film can be damaged or completely destroyed. How to apply a patina to a copper coin at home, and what is needed for this?

Patination methods

In order to give an aesthetic appearance to coins, to increase the sale price, several methods of applying patina are used.

Coin before and after patina

Patination of copper coins can be done at home using:

• ammonia;
• sulfuric ointment;
• manganese and copper sulfate;
• sodium hyposulfite;
• gas stove;
• ammonia.

1) If you want to give a copper coin a nice brown color, ammonia can be used for patination. To do this, place the coin in a closed container with a vapor of alcohol, while the coin should not touch the liquid. To do this, hang the coin or place it so that all its sides can be covered with an even film. A closed container must not be heated, as condensation may form, resulting in uneven patination. Leave the coin for a couple of minutes only, do not overdo it.

2) In order to give the coins a dark brown color, apply sulfuric ointment to them, rubbing them in thoroughly. But do it underwater. When the coin begins to darken a little, take it out of the water. Dry well with a napkin, because if you do not remove all the sulfuric ointment, then the coin may turn black. After all the procedures, leave it alone for two days, then polish it with vaseline oil.

3) Patinating copper coins with manganese or copper sulfate is a good way to get a light or dark brown. To do this, make a solution of half a liter of water, three grams of manganese, 30 grams of vitriol. Heat it up to 90 degrees, put the coins in the solution for five minutes, but every minute turn them over to the other side. Take it out, look at the color, if it is pale, put more. After you have achieved the desired shade, rub the coin thoroughly with your fingers.

4) Use sodium hyposulfite for a bronze color. Dip a coin into it for a few seconds and wipe well with a napkin.

5) A copper coin can be heated on gas. Hold the coin with the clip and heat it up until golden, then brush it with baby cream with your fingers. The coin will be covered with a light brown film.

6) Another way to get a light brown patina is more complicated. To do this, you need a rust neutralizer and pieces of copper. We wait until the color of copper turns bluish-green, after which we take it out of the neutralizer and put coins in it. Rinse the coin with water and apply sulfuric ointment.

7) You can patinate the coin with ammonia. To do this, take a container, pour ammonia on the bottom. Put a glass or a glass, put a cotton pad on top, a coin on it. The coin must not touch the ammonia, it is patinated in pairs. Be sure to close the container. Fifteen minutes later, flip the coin to the other side.

It takes a lot of skill to apply patina correctly. After several attempts, you will already know how to achieve the desired effect. Patinated coins are cheaper than items with a "native" protective film, so only patinate coins after the film has been destroyed or damaged.

How to recognize a patinated coin?

Artificial patina can be recognized if:

• the color lay unevenly;
• the film is applied over scratches and damage;
• the shades turned out unnatural;
• the patina did not color the product in the recesses;
• surface coloring.

With the help of patination, copper coins will again take on the look of old coins in various shades.

Patina on coins- from the dictionary we know that patina comes from Italy - a plaque or film characteristic of copper and its alloys.

There are two types of patina:

• natural - a film formed on the surface of coins under the influence of the environment, the result of aging.
• artificial - the same film that appears on coins as a result of the application of special substances.

Many misleadingly think that the patina on the coins is ugly. But real numismatists, on the contrary, appreciate a beautiful patina, for them it is an indicator of proper and careful storage in good conditions. The patina on the coins is her life story, the era, reflected in this form.

Each metal is covered with a patina in its own way. Silver with a patina looks beautiful - this is the result of the presence of hydrogen sulfide in the air, which forms silver sulfide ( album for coins, leather or canvas emit hydrogen sulfide). The patina on silver coins ranges from yellow, raspberry to black. If a silver coin has copper in its alloy, it may become covered with a green coating.

In general, copper alloys such as bronze and brass are more susceptible to chemical reactions. Copper salts appear in the form of green and blue, and even turquoise patina. Copper oxides and sulfides are most often in the form of brown and black patina. Gold coins with the addition of copper and silver may develop an orange patina. There may be some patina on the nickel. Color from blue, gray and even a little golden hue.

Natural patina is formed under the influence of substances that are present in small quantities in the atmosphere. But artificially applying a patina to a coin is not a difficult task and does not take much time and effort.

We will consider the ways of patination:

• Baking coins in the oven, someone bakes them even in potatoes;
• Soaking in a thin layer of acid, bleaches containing sulfur;
• Burning coins with a blowtorch;
• Soaking in potassium permanganate, vitriol and distilled water;
• Coating the coin with sulfuric ointment in hot water;
• Aging in a closed container with crushed match heads;
• Sunlight storage;
• Storage in oak boards (“Cabinet patina”);
• Sealed in a regular envelope containing sulfur.

And in more detail about one or two of the easiest ways to make a patina on coins with your own hands:

1. You buy distilled water, copper sulfate and potassium permanganate at the pharmacy. In 1 liter of distilled water, dilute 50 grams of vitriol and 5 grams of potassium permanganate, bring it to 70 - 80 ° C, lower the coins into the solution, after a while you will see changes. Keep the coin in solution until the desired color is obtained.
2. Treat the coin with sulfuric ointment, which you also get at the pharmacy. Apply sulfuric ointment to the glove, then apply the glove to the coin. Application of sulfuric ointment and its rubbing is carried out under water, it is enough to use a bath that fits the coin completely, and of course there is a place for hands. Keep rubbing until there are no shiny areas left on the coin. At the end, under running water, rinse off the excess, wipe with a napkin, and dry. Polish the surface with a soft cloth, then rinse the coin with soap and a soft brush, the main thing is not to overdo it. The blackness will come off and leave a light brown patina. Dry the coin.

The artificial patina is often a disadvantage of the coin. And the natural patina for an amateur is valued by numismatists as a virtue and even an advantage. So apply the patina in a way that is convenient for you, the main thing is that it is valuable for you.

And how to save the coins from your collection so that no factors affect the deterioration of its condition, we talk in our other articles. The site also provides photos with a detailed description of the operation and the importance of using an album for coins. a clear example of a way to store values ​​of this kind. Good luck with your collecting!