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Specific Gravity of GoldCopyright © 2008 Robert VaynerThe first drawback to gold is that the stuff is heavy. The second drawback is that it is soft. Gold is so soft that a strong man can mash it out of shape or mold it into some other shape with his fingers. It also has a low melting point. Drape a gold nugget over a hot candle and it will slowly ooze right off the strand holding it up because of the weight and low melting point. Even at normal temperatures an ounce of gold can be hammered out flat enough to cover a whole acre of ground. That means that gold can be made into sheets thin enough to write on. Some ancient people used gold sheets to record important events for generations yet unborn. One of the first discoveries that goldsmiths made was that gold could be used to cover other objects like shields, sword handles and bowls and it would still be glimmering with princely beauty. The royal families loved gold covered utensils because it was commonly believed that gold made poisons visible or neutralized them. Since it seemed like everyone on earth wanted to kill a king or two, gold became known as the "Noble" metal. Rich kings also took the precaution of using "tasters" who ate part of the king's food before the king did. The life expectancy for tasters was so low that they could not get life insurance at any price. Kings preferred crowns made of gold and many stuck precious stones into the band. Then it was discovered that gold could be alloyed with base metals to be made stronger and lighter but still retain its brilliance. Not all kings welcomed this new advance in technology. One Grecian king suspected his royal goldsmith had not made his latest crown of pure gold and had put the balance in his own pocket, but how to prove it? He turned the problem over to Archimedes. Ever since inventing the world's first rotary steam engine this great scientist had found that he thought best while he soaked in a tub of hot water. As he lowered his buns into the tub this time he noticed that the water level rose consistently with the immersion of his body. Thus was born the idea of specific gravity. Specific gravity is the density of the material divided by the density of water. Pure gold can easily be distinguished from alloyed gold by specific gravity alone. Therefore, take a container of water and put the crown in. If it raises the water level less than the same volume of pure gold then it is not pure gold. Gold rings and other gold jewelry today are seldom pure gold. But each piece made in or for sale in the United States is stamped with the proportion of pure gold in the piece. 24K is pure gold. If you have a gold ring, look inside it for the stamp. It will probably say "14K." That means 14 parts out of every 24 are gold. It is a time-tested balance to producing a strong, enduring piece of jewelry that still shines like pure gold. Other marks, not quite as common are: 18, 12 or 10K. 18K means there are 18 karats of gold to an ounce of the material. 18K is still quite malleable by hand. Consequently it can lose its shape, or worse yet, lose some of the precious stones set in it. Today many people prefer "white gold." The highest quality white gold is made up of gold and palladium, sometimes with trace levels of platinum for weight and durability, although this often requires specialized goldsmiths. It is usually at least 17K. 12K and 10K looks significantly less like pure gold. Experienced gold buyers with "good eyesight" can spot the difference from 30 paces away. Remember that just being stamped 14K doesn't make it so. The only way to really be safe is to always buy your gold jewelry from a trusted jeweler. When your trusted jeweler is a wholesaler like Fashion Penny dot com you can get some real bargains About The Author:
*** Digital Reprint Rights *** *** Author Notification *** We ask that you notify the author of publication of his or her work. Robert Vayner can be reached at: robert.vayner@thephantomwriters.com *** Print Publication Reprint Rights *** If you desire to publish this article in a PRINT publication, you must contact the author directly for Print Permission at: robert.vayner@thephantomwriters.com
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