How to Make Fool's Gold

The increasing value of gold is an incentive for unscrupulous individuals to make fool's gold. It pays to become wise about the methods used to make a piece of common metal have the appearance of real gold. Such methods include plating or painting metal to look like the real thing.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Learn to Identify How Fool's Gold Is Made

1. Notice the attempt to coat metals with real gold. Instead of a nugget being pure gold, it may be a copper nugget with a thin layer of real gold. This thin layer can be misleading, since it has the external appearance of through-and-through gold.
2. Look for gold paint to be used on metals to create fool's gold. The brilliance of real gold can easily be duplicated using high-quality paint. To check for authenticity, rub the surface to look for discriminating color differences or have a professional examine the piece.
3. Examine gold look-alike substances, such as iron pyrite, which is one of the most common in the class of fool's gold. Iron pyrite has a distinct sulfur odor, and it is a brassy yellow. It is often used in jewelry.
4. Check out the use of chalcopyrite (copper pyrites or copper sulfide) to make an object appear to be gold. This cooper ore is considered to be fool's gold, as it has a brassy to golden-yellow color that is much the same as pyrite. It is easily identified by its magnetic properties upon heating.
5. Learn about bismutite, a mineral used to make fool's gold. The yellowish color and consistency can be mistaken for the real thing.
6. Examine nuggets or jewelry to determine whether they are pure gold or gold plated. Using gold plating as a covering on another metal, such as silver or copper, can be misleading. The gold-plated layer on jewelry will eventually wear off, leaving the underlying metal to tarnish and discolor.

Tips & Warnings

• Look for a jeweler's identifying trademark. Most gold jewelers have a registered mark that certifies the quality of the gold.
• Consider the natural tarnish resistance of gold jewelry. Gold does not react with oxygen and will not tarnish.
• Buy gold nuggets, coins or jewelry only from reputable dealers. If buying online, check with the Better Business Bureau for online services. Also, check for an actual physical address of the business.