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The E-Sylum:  Volume 10, Number 14, April 8, 2007, Article 28

ON CLEANING PAPER MONEY

Regarding last week's query on cleaning paper money, John and Nancy 
Wilson of Ocala, FL write: "The following web page has good information 
(close to the bottom of the page) on cleaning or repairing paper money. 
banknotes.com/faq.htm "

Darryl Atchison writes: "Please find below a list of published references 
that I am aware of pertaining to banknote preservation and restoration as 
well as a few comments on the subject.

1. Curto, J.J. - <>. - The 
Numismatist : Vol. 58, no. 6 (June 1945). - (Note that this article 
was later off-printed in 1971). 

2. Holmes, Walter G. - <>. - Canadian Paper 
Money Journal : Vol. 2 (1966). - p. 9, 23

3. Proulx, Claude. - <>. - Canadian Numismatic Journal : Vol. 39, no. 6 (July - Aug. 
1994). - p. 288 - 290, ill.

4. Tribolet, Harold W. - <>. - Canadian Paper Money Journal : Vol. 6 (1970). - p. 30 - 
33, 49 - 50. - discusses the art of the paper conservator, paper 
conservation and restoration. Part 2 CPMJ : Vol. 6, p. 74 

5. Coin World published a four-part series on this highly controversial 
topic beginning in Sep. 2002 which was intended to blow the lid off of 
the practice whereby banknotes were being 'cleaned' / 'restored' and 
then subsequently re-presented to the collecting fraternity as 'genuine, 
original-condition' notes. 

"I remember having a discussion with a few paper money collectors 
approximately fifteen years ago in which it was claimed by at least 
one individual that the majority of banknotes in the marketplace had 
been 'processed' at one time or another. Whether this was purely 
speculation or not I can't say but I don't think anyone would have to 
look too hard to find examples of processed notes. Think of processing 
as the equivalent of dipping coins and the prevalence of the latter 
practice for a correlation. No matter how many people say that dipping 
is bad for coins the practice continues and various chemical products 
are readily and openly available in the numismatic marketplace. 

"Finally, John Ford Jr. once claimed that he was so talented at restoring 
banknotes that an untrained eye could not detect the restoration... or 
words to that effect. 

"All in all, I am in the 'don't clean' camp whenever possible. There 
are too many nefarious practitioners who later claim that these 
cleaned/restored items are in a much higher state of preservation than 
is the actual case and it is only the innocent collector who suffers 
in the end."

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor 
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