It is almost impossible to find pure 999 gold in jewelry stores. As a rule, products with a smaller proportion of aurum are displayed on velvet cushions. During the smelting process, certain chemical elements are introduced into the precious metal in quantities sufficient to achieve the desired degree of strength and the desired color.
Signs of pure aurum
Many people associate gold with the warm, sunny glow of jewelry. But anyone who has seen nuggets knows that they cannot shine so much, and their color is completely different, sometimes gray or even greenish. This is how the influence of various impurities manifests itself.
When gold is heated to 1063˚ C, the molten mass turns light green. In order for gold to boil, it is necessary to create a temperature of 2947˚ C. In this case, greenish-yellow vapors appear.
Only after multi-stage thorough cleaning - physical and chemical - does the metal become yellow. This process is called affining. Modern technologies make it possible to achieve an almost ideal degree of purity, when the share of gold in the ingot is 99.99%. Experts call this precious metal sample “four nines.”
Some names for gold have come down from the past, which today are no longer clear to everyone:
- Chervonnoe - metal with purity in the range from 916 to 986;
- red - an alloy with copper, having a grade of 900.
Aurum is a very soft metal. This property was often used to test it by biting a 900 fine coin. If there were traces of teeth on the surface, the chervonets were considered genuine, made of real gold. Only this alloy was approved in Tsarist Russia for the minting of first ten-ruble coins, and later five-ruble coins.
The noble metal is distinguished by unusually high rates of malleability and ductility:
- Just one gram of “four nines” is enough to get a gold sheet measuring almost 1x1 m.
- From a gram of noble metal, 2.5 km of wire and even more are obtained. It is in great demand in ultra-precise microcircuits.
It is these characteristics that make it possible to produce the thinnest foil that is used to cover some surfaces. A layer of gold leaf (another name for aurum) shines on church domes and spiers.
Physical and chemical properties:
- Softness. Among the metals we encounter every day, gold is the softest. This property allows you to quickly detect high-purity precious metal; just bite lightly on the product, and teeth marks will remain.
- Density. Gold is one of the densest metals - 19.3 g/m3. A ball with a diameter of slightly more than 46 millimeters will weigh 1 kilogram, which is about half a glass of placer.
- Plastic. High ductility allows you to obtain the thinnest sheets and threads without breaks. This property was used to create church domes in ancient times. To make it more clear, from 1 gram you can get a square sheet with a side of 1 meter or get a wire 2610 m long.
- Inertia. Gold reluctantly reacts with substances, being inert. For this feature, pure metal was nicknamed “noble”. This feature became the basis for conducting an examination of the authenticity of the metal. The product being tested is placed in acid; due to its inertness, the pure alloy does not react to changes in the environment, but other metals begin to oxidize.
Jewelry
However, these same qualities make it extremely difficult to use the noble metal to create jewelry. The problem is that products made from 999 gold are very fragile creations and can easily become deformed. Because of this feature, jewelers call metal or wooden boxes the best option for storing elegant sissies.
Therefore, it is almost impossible to find jewelry made of 999-carat aurum on the shelves of jewelry stores in Russia - these incredibly expensive things are usually peacefully stored in collections, and their photographs or videos are shown to the public.
Among European jewelry lovers, the 750 standard is more popular; Russians more often buy products with the 585 stamp - due to the optimal balance of practicality, price and quality. The countries of the East are more faithful to traditions, and there jewelry of the highest standard, 999, is still purchased, loved and worn, but only on the occasion of the most special events.
Designers never tire of creating new versions of rings, necklaces, earrings, as well as chains and bracelets. Modern jewelers have learned to paint solar metal of the highest standard in the most unexpected colors:
- A black tint appears in alloys containing rubidium.
- Alloys with indium have a bluish tint.
- The red range of shades is provided by the copper ligature.
- The cool white shine is provided by 8% platinum.
The resulting alloys are most often used for inserts to give the product greater expressiveness. Of course, such products are from the elite category.
In Russia, it has long been believed that wedding rings made of pure gold are reliable guardians of the family. People believed that they would protect well-being and attract wealth. At the same time, the products turned out to be more durable and suitable for use only when they were made massive, which is why such ritual jewelry weighed quite a lot - 8-10 grams. But over time, the rings became thinner and “erased,” which is explained by the softness of the metal.
Similar wedding rings are still produced today. But most newlyweds still do not buy 999 gold rings, but more affordable and accessible ones, those with the numbers “585” on them. Such products are much harder and more practical, and they can be worn every day, because scratches do not appear on them so quickly.
Some people believe that jewelry is a good investment and can be sold if necessary. Of course, a pawn shop will accept a ring or earrings. However, the proposed price will be low - at the level of the cost of scrap. The presence of natural stones and artistic nuances will not be taken into account.
Therefore, let the jewelry become family heirlooms. And only when the famous jeweler’s original work is three hundred years old will it truly become a precious pearl of the collection.
How do you get colored gold?
Impurities in samples are by no means unnecessary; they have a specific purpose - to impart certain properties to the metal. These impurities are called ligature. Since 999 standard gold is not entirely suitable for creating jewelry, with the help of ligatures the metal is made stronger and given a different color, this is how non-ferrous alloys are obtained. The following are added to the alloy: platinum, silver, copper, nickel, palladium. Various compositions of ligatures make it possible to obtain red, yellow, white, black and other shades. In our country, single-color products are less popular than jewelry with several metals of different colors.
This is interesting! Color does not at all affect the cost of the product; the price is determined by the quality of the alloy and the complexity of the jewelry work.
Bank gold
One hundred percent pure aurum is not found either in nature or in storage facilities, but there is the highest purity of the metal used to form the country’s gold reserves and investments - 999.9. It is from this kind of gold that bars and coins are cast . The weight of bank bullion depends on the purpose:
- for state reserves - from 1 kg;
- for private investors - from 20 years.
Interestingly, the volume of 1 kg of gold is just a cube, the edge of which is 3.73 cm long.
When purchasing a gold bar, you should first find out the rules. The fact is that you will additionally have to pay not only VAT, but also a bank commission. You will also need to store this ingot later in one of two ways:
- rent a locker in a financial institution;
- buy a safe.
As for bank coins, they can also be considered as an investment option. But there is one caveat: most likely, the coin will have collection value.
There is another investment option - compulsory medical insurance or an impersonal metal account. Each type of investment has a lot of nuances and has its own pros and cons. Therefore, it is so important to study all the information on them, and only then make a decision.
All investments in gold have one thing in common: a long-term outlook. The price set on the world market for the precious metal is growing. Therefore, it is aurum of the highest standard that in most countries acts as a guarantor of the welfare of the state.
What does 999 sample mean?
The fineness of a metal is an important indicator of its price and liquidity of a given asset. If jewelry is sold with the mark “585”, this means that it contains exactly 58.5 grams of gold per 100 grams of metal part. The remaining 41.5 grams are impurities, which become silver, copper, and tungsten. Yellow gold contains silver, red gold contains copper, white gold contains tungsten. The latter substance (tungsten) is similar in properties to gold, but has a record low cost for it. Therefore, you should not trust jewelry sellers about the possibility of investing in jewelry.
Buying a gold necklace or bracelet will turn out to be an illiquid deception, because when taking the item out of the store, the buyer loses 50% of its value. In other words, having purchased a piece of jewelry for 50 thousand rubles, you can only sell it for 24-25 thousand in the same store or any other pawnshop.
Important information
Making a decision to create a gold reserve is a very important moment. Before purchasing bullion, you should pay attention to very important aspects:
- The bank must be reliable not only according to commercials and promises of the manager. It’s a good idea to find out reviews about this financial institution from its clients.
- The bars offered for sale are 999 fine. Stamped ones are considered to be of the highest quality; cast ones belong to a less valuable group. Among the powder ones you can find fakes.
- Individual manufacturer certificates. This means that each bar has its own document.
- Passport of the plant where the precious metal was produced.
If the front surface does not contain all the necessary data: the country of origin, the weight of the ingot, the name of the precious metal, the hallmark or the individual number assigned to the product at the factory, it is better to refuse such a purchase, as it is most likely a fake.
There is a direct dependence of the cost on the physical condition of the precious metal and its certificates. The number of factories producing stamped bars of the highest status - London Good Delivery - includes several Russian enterprises.
The products of the Yekaterinburg Non-Ferrous Metals Processing Plant, the Novosibirsk Refinery, the Prioksky and Krasnoyarsk Non-Ferrous Metals Plants have received worldwide recognition in the precious metals market.
Soft, pliable and very plastic aurum requires careful treatment and special storage conditions that eliminate the possibility of damage - chips or scratches.
999 gold bar price
The cost of a gold bar directly depends on its weight and the price set by the seller for 1 gram of precious metal. Since the price of metals rarely decreases or increases, this market is devoid of active changes, and small fluctuations in value depend on the following factors:
- The quality of the metal and its purity. 999 fineness is the most expensive, as it actually determines pure gold.
- Investor demand for gold. The higher the demand, the higher the price rises. If the price is reduced and demand increases, the cost of a gram of gold will inevitably rise.
- The share of gold production in the country and the share of metal imported from abroad. Russian-made gold is always valuable, but has a relatively low price compared to foreign versions due to import duties.
Investors are advised to invest money in a reserve currency, which is gold, but you should not spend all your savings on bullion. It will be enough to keep 10-15% of all savings that are set aside for a “rainy day” in actual gold.
Having decided on this type of investment, you should understand that long-term investments are best made in reliable organizations that are stable and cannot go bankrupt or close. Today, Sberbank ranks first in the rating of Russian banks.
Banks set the price of a gram of gold according to market price fluctuations and publishing any figures would be pointless. In different cases, you can purchase metal from the same bank (on the same day) at different prices. Why is this happening:
- The price for purchasing the actual metal and opening the compulsory medical insurance will vary.
- The cost of purchasing online is always lower than the price presented at the bank branch for the actual bullion.
- Precious metals are sold to premium clients at a minimal markup, which means low cost.
To independently calculate how much a gram of pure gold costs in a jar, compare a troy ounce with the current exchange rate of the US dollar. Add VAT to the result and get the final cost.
Application area
The 999 stamp is on bank bars and commemorative coins, which can also be purchased at the bank. The state gold reserve is formed from it, and craftsmen prepare alloys for jewelry.
Gold leaf has a purity of 999 - sheets of precious metal several microns thick, which are used for decorative finishing of objects of art and architecture, and even as a decoration for culinary masterpieces or an ingredient in expensive cocktails.
Recommendations for storage, care and cleaning
Gold coins are issued and stored in special cases. Their value is significantly influenced by the condition in which they are at the time of sale. I do not recommend taking them out of the factory capsule.
Bank bars are sold in a protective polyethylene film, which is strictly prohibited from being removed. Banks and jewelers do not accept unpacked bullion. Perhaps at a significant discount.
If there is a need to clean 999 fine jewelry, the best solution would be to contact a specialist so as not to damage such a thing. Pure gold is such a soft metal that it can be easily scratched or even crushed with your fingers.
Does real gold darken?
If the metal has not been exposed to chlorine or concentrated acids, it does not darken, rust, or oxidize in air and water.
Basic properties
Important properties of the noble metal are various physical and mechanical aspects:
- In itself it is quite a heavy metal. The density of gold is also high and equal to 19.32 g/cm3. The specific gravity of a metal is a unit of calculation that indicates its density. Specific gravity is important when producing an alloy. The highest quality is a mixture of metals with a slight difference in specific gravity.
- The color of the alloy can indicate the impurities present in it. The shade of red is a sign of the presence of copper in it. Platinum, silver or tin can change the color from yellow to white. A bluish-white tint indicates the presence of lead.
- The melting point of gold is 1095 degrees Celsius. Only in this case does it melt and become liquid.
