The E-Sylum:  Volume 7, Number 17, April 25, 2004, Article 22

MORE ON SULPHUR SPOTS

  R.S. Neale writes: "While very true that carbon spots aren't
  carbon, I think that the writer of this commentary, admittedly
  not a chemist, should consult one to get his terminology
  straightened out. For example, when copper reacts with sulfur
  in some form or other, it becomes copper sulfide (not copper
  sulfate), and the process does indeed involve oxidation
  (wherein an element loses electrons to become a positively
  charged ion)."

  Joe Boling writes: "I believe most coin graders and conservators
  agree that "carbon spots" are usually the result of droplets of
  saliva (and an occasional dandruff flake) that have landed on
  coins while they were being handled and talked over. As such,
  I'm not sure that sulfur has any connection with them, though I
  don't know what the principal culprit would be. What's in
  saliva?"

  [What's in saliva probably depends on what the person was
  eating...  -Editor]

  Wayne Homren, Editor

	coinbooks.org Web

The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization 
promoting numismatic literature. See our web site at coinbooks.org.

To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor 
at this address: whomren@coinlibrary.com

To subscribe go to: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum