Gold Identification

The archive is sent photographs of found yellow objects several times a year, usually with a question attached. This page is the standing answer. It has been listed as in preparation for some years; the notes it is written from are older than that.

What a found yellow object usually is

In the archive's experience, in rough order of frequency: brass — fittings, hinges, curtain rings, shell casings, and the backs of drawers produce a steady supply; foil from chocolate coins, especially in the weeks after December and March; gilt buttons and costume jewellery; and iron pyrite, in gravel and on beaches. Actual gold is rare, and actual gold of unexplained origin is much rarer than that.

Simple checks before writing to anyone

• Magnet. Gold is not magnetic. Neither is brass, so a magnet can only rule things in, not out; but if the object jumps to the magnet it is steel, and the enquiry can close there.
• Weight. Gold is very heavy for its size — roughly twice the weight of the same volume of lead-free brass. A gold object feels wrong in the hand, in a way most people notice immediately.
• Hallmarks. United Kingdom gold is normally hallmarked: a sponsor's mark, a fineness number (375, 585, 750, 916 or 999), and an assay office mark. A hallmark is a strong sign; its absence, on old or foreign items, proves little.
• Do not bite anything. The test is unreliable and is bad for the teeth and the object in that order.

If you believe it is gold, and old

England, Wales and Northern Ireland have a legal framework for this: under the Treasure Act 1996, finds that may qualify as treasure must be reported to the coroner for the district within fourteen days. In practice the way to do it is through the local Finds Liaison Officer of the Portable Antiquities Scheme, who will also identify the object for you, which for most finders is the useful part. Scotland has its own, older system, under which effectively all such finds belong to the Crown and must be reported. None of this depends on how the object came to be where it was.

The other question

The question usually attached to the photograph is not really about metallurgy, and the archive answers it here once. No object submitted to this archive has ever been established to be leprechaun gold. The archive does not authenticate metal and does not make accusations; an accusation would require evidence of possession, and the archive has never seen any. We would also point to the traditional record, in which recovered leprechaun gold does not keep; see the FAQ on information obtained under pressure.