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Five Gold Myths

03/20/2008

Gold can make people do some crazy things – and believe some crazy un-truths. Here, five of the most common, sometimes-comical myths about gold and the facts (and rumors!) behind them.

Myth # 1: A piece of pure gold the size of a matchbook can be pounded flat until it is large enough to cover a regulation-size tennis court.
Fact: Believe it or not, this one is widely regarded as true. Gold is the most malleable and ductile of all metals, able to be pounded (by professionals, skilled at their trade) to a thickness of millionths of an inch. This ultra-light, ultra-thin product is known as gold leaf, and is hundreds of times thinner than foil. Pounded as thin as possible, a matchbook-sized piece of pure gold would theoretically cover the area of a tennis court – a claim that even the Discovery Channel’s MythBusters is wary of tackling. On their official website, MythBusters cites it as one of 10 myths they would never investigate (because of the cost associated with acquiring the requisite matchbook-sized piece of pure gold). The show does partially amend their refusal: they will happily “bust” that myth, so long as someone donates the gold!

Myth # 2: Gold comes in various colors: white gold, yellow gold, rose gold…
Fact: Sorry, Rainbow Brite, but gold comes in only one hue: gold. Colored gold is actually an alloy (a mixed metal compound) crafted by mixing pure gold with silver, platinum, copper, aluminum or iron to create a palette more varied than the natural yellow hue of gold alone.

Myth # 3: All currency is backed by gold.
Fact: Not even close. U.S. currency hasn’t been directly correlated to gold since 1933, and in 1971 the world’s currencies followed suit. Interestingly, this hasn’t affected the value of gold; unlike stocks and bonds, whose rate of interest depends on the market, gold has appreciated in value at a rate greater than 33% annually, making it one of the safest and surest investments in the world – and one of the most lucrative investments to “cash in” when the market is high. Note: As was recently noted in a segment on Good Morning, America!, the value of gold is at an all-time high, making this an extraordinary time to turn Gramma’s old brooch into your new vacation fund!

Myth # 4: Gold is opaque.
Fact: Yes and no. Generally speaking, gold is an opaque material. But because of its high level of malleability (see Myth # 1), gold can be pounded thin enough to allow light to pass through. Light coming through gold leaf will appear bluish-green, because gold is highly reflective of the colors at the yellow and red end of the spectrum of light.

Myth # 5: You can tell if a piece of gold jewelry is real by biting it. Fact: Maybe, but don’t tell your dentist we said so! The truth is that gold’s relative softness as a metal makes it susceptible to tooth imprints; the human jaw is strong enough and human teeth hard enough to dent gold, and the more pure the gold, the more easily it can be dented. Clever jewelers have developed a way of cheating this test, though – painting lead with a gold color, because lead is equally soft. Of course, biting lead jewelry is a particularly bad idea; lead poisoning is so 19th century.

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