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Gold

Gold is perhaps one of the most valuable, most popular, and most accessible precious metals on earth. It has inspired wide ranges of emotional intensity in people since early times, from romance to murder. The Westward expansion in the US was driven in part by Gold in the 1800’s when large deposits of the metal was discovered in California and Colorado. Most of the Gold that has been excavated has been from South Africa.

Since the earliest of times, Gold has been used as a monetary standard and the symbol of great wealth. The Pharaohs of ancient Egypt made abundant use of Gold, both in life and in death. Empires have been built and destroyed over it, and fantastic legends (like those of King Midas and The Goose That Laid The Golden Egg) have been inspired by man’s fascination with it.

Gold is rated in Karats, 24K being pure gold and Gold alloys of Copper, Silver, Palladium (of the Platinum family), or Nickel range from 9K to 18K depending on how much of the other metals are used. Because of this, Gold alloys can vary in color even though the Karat rating is the same. For instance, 14K Gold mixed with Copper (Rose Gold) can appear more red in color than 14K Gold mixed with Palladium. White Gold is usually made with Palladium, Silver, or Nickel. If the silver content of the Gold is greater than 20% it is called Electrum.

WEDDING ANNIVERSARY: Gold is the accepted gift for the 1st and the 50th wedding anniversary.

GOLD KARATS:

Karat	Thousandths	% Pure Gold
8K Gold	333	33.3%
10K Gold	417	41.7%
14K Gold	585	58.5%
16K Gold	666	66.6%
18K Gold	750	75.0%
20K Gold	832	83.2%
22K Gold	917	91.7%
24K Gold	1000	100.0%

Most chemicals and acids do not affect gold, and pure Gold is extremely resistant to tarnishing. However, chlorine is one of the few chemicals that can oxidize Gold. Therefore, Gold (especially Gold Plate) should not be worn when bathing as many municipalities in the US chlorinate the water supply. Gold alloys can tarnish more readily as the other metals in the Gold can be adversely affected by exposure to air and moisture.

Gold is non-toxic and can be ingested. Unlike Silver and other metals that are safe to ingest (in small quantities), Gold does not break down in the human body and will pass intact. Also unlike Silver, Gold has no medicinal properties. The use of finely flaked Gold in food is purely aesthetic.

Gold must be labeled according to its purity and method of application. Pure Gold is generally too soft for jewelry and other uses where wear can cause the Gold piece to suffer damage. Only in Gold plating is pure Gold used. Below is a list of Gold definitions as used in the jewelry industry:

SOLID GOLD
If the piece is solid Gold, it will only have the karat stamped into the piece.

GOLD FILLED or GF
Means the Gold has been applied as a coating to a base metal (usually Brass). Gold filled pieces will have the karat stamped into the metal, as well as the percentage of Gold used to coat the piece. For instance, a piece marked GF 24K 1/20 means that 24K Gold was used, and the amount of Gold on the piece is equal to 1/20 the weight of the piece.

ROLLED GOLD FILLED or RGF
Rolled Gold Filled is more often seen on older pieces of jewelry and on Gold filled pen sets. It is essentially the same as Gold-filled. The term “Rolled” pertains to a process of burnishing the Gold onto the piece.

GOLD VERMEIL
An item sold as Gold Vermeil (pronounced ver-MAY) is Gold-filled over Sterling Silver. Any piece that uses Brass or a metal other than SS as its base metal cannot be sold as Gold Vermeil. Gold Vermeil pieces are usually softer than other Gold-filled pieces.

GOLD PLATED
Gold Plating involves immersing a base metal in a solution and electrically drawing gold molecules to the base metal. Electroplating fuses the Gold to the base metal, however the layer of Gold is extremely thin. Due to the softness of Gold, Gold plating is prone to wearing off over time. Gold plated items should never be exposed to chlorine as they will turn color.

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