Ruinous Coins and Sand Castles: New Jersey Copper about to be Washed Away

A favorite amusement is building castles on the beach.
   With plastic shovel and pail, we construct an impenetrable fortress, only to watch the ramparts crumble in the onslaught of the rising tide.
   We are mesmerized, watching until the last remnant -- just a wet mound remaining -- is washed away. Obliterated.
   This is the drama of life: The recapitulation of empire and decline, of youth and old age, of certain death to all persons and
things.

New Jersey copper about to be washed away.

We are enamored with ruins because they are like half-washed sand castles frozen in time. Ruins are brutally honest, as they announce the end of a bustling summer. No season lasts forever.
   Corroded coins are ruins.
   We like to think of them as immortal, as history in your hands -- the still point. But, they have a lifespan. And so, like our sand castles, grounders eaten away by corrosion show us the way home.
   No wonder we cannot stop looking, our fingertips rubbing away at the porous surface. It is an urgent curiosity.
   This lowly New Jersey copper evokes a wide range of emotions. I am fascinated. It scares me. It makes me think about all sorts of things. It is a piece of numismatic art.
   This is the way of the necromancer.

I go with the Nail. Coins with Authority

I have been talking with archeologists and curators lately.
   Now here are some folks that enjoy a good relic. They enjoy them even if they are scraggy. After all, many relics are found at the broad end of a shovel (a trowel, actually).
   Discovering a coin on a dig is a prize. Unlike rusty nails, coins are complete time capsules, or nearly so. Images and legends tell you where it came from. Plus, coins have dates!
   Everyone loves dates.

   Nails, on the other hand, are more enigmatic. Still, a rusted square nail is a cool find.
   For archeologists and curators, a relic coin tells a story regardless of its condition. Corrosion is expected. And, it is analyzed to see what happened while it rested in limbo.
   Of course, most of us would prefer a well-preserved coin versus one with damage (environmental or otherwise), but any coin excavated on a dig is worth a "shovels-up" celebration.
   Dug coins have authority.
   Many collectors miss this. Instead, they are concerned about authenticity -- as well they should for rare items that are counterfeited. But what I am referring to is different. Put another way, collectors like to play authenticator. For example, they purchase a large cent of a particular die-variety and then re-attribute it over and over. Taking this a step further, some collectors determine the die-state as well. All of this is great fun! It tells you about what was happening in the mint.
   But what about afterwards? What about all the other history?
   This is where relic coins come in (stage left). Their corroded surfaces announce their authority, as if to say: "I go with the nail."
   Herein lies the heart of the necromancer's approach to collecting.
   I want coins that go with the nail!