“Browning” copper coins?

Feb 1, 2023
1
1
My collection of English pennies spans a spectrum of shades ranging from shiny new copper (a bright amber orange) all the way to antique bronze (a dark chocolate brown).

Uniformity, and hence interchangeability, are therefore a problem.

I have various sorts of gaff sets that thus cannot be combined with each other, due to the stark mismatches in the colors of their copper aspects.

Obviously I could easily render them pretty much all the same with a quick vinegar and salt bath, but I really don’t want the default baseline of all my English pennies (especially the really old King George ones) to be bright and shiny.

So instead, is there a way of hastening the all-too-slow accumulation of that rich brown tarnish/patina on my shinier copper coins?
 
  • Like
Reactions: JoshL8

DavidL11229

Elite Member
Jul 25, 2015
589
314
Seattle
Leather will do that for silver coins, not sure about copper but it would be worth a try with a test coin. It should either turn it brown or green, I'm just not sure which. Put it in a wallet and flip it over once in a while.
 

WitchDocIsIn

Elite Member
Sep 13, 2008
5,877
2,945
If they're actual copper, just handle them daily. The oils in your skin will patina them.

Also you can get sprays that cause the patina. Just Google "copper patina spray".
 
Jul 31, 2023
13
2
Try sticking them in a raw potato. It works other metals, such as carbon steel and brass.
 
Searching...
{[{ searchResultsCount }]} Results