The old proverb tells us that “all that glitters isn’t gold,” but sometimes gold itself isn’t gold in color.
This precious metal comes in a multitude of distinct colors, and it’s worth knowing more about them if you’re interested in buying or selling gold.
What color is your gold?
Cold is available in a range of colors, from the classic yellow to bolder shades like purple. Some pieces of jewelry may include multiple gold colors to create a two-tone or three-tone effect. If you’re interested in a piece of jewelry that contains some specific colors, read on to learn more about them.
Yellow gold
This is gold in its natural state. It’s often mixed with other metals such as copper or silver for added strength. The deeper the yellow, the higher the karat of the gold. The karat system is a measure of gold’s purity. The higher the karat number – it goes up to 24 – the purer the gold.
Yellow gold is used in a variety of jewelry, from stud earrings to necklaces, bracelets, rings and settings.
White gold
This is gold that’s blended with copper, zinc and nickel to get a white hue, but it can be made even shinier with a plating of another metal, such as rhodium. If you have a nickel allergy, you may be sensitive to wearing this kind of gold, and oftentimes other alloys are added to white gold jewelry to reduce the effects of sensitivity.
Rose gold
Also known as pink or blush gold, this metal gets its rosy tint by being alloyed with copper. The more copper involved, the redder the gold.
Green gold
Unlike the other gold varieties on this list, green gold contains no copper. Instead, it’s blended with silver to get its tint. This type of gold is less common than the others and is often used to make leaves and accents in jewelry design.
Black gold
We’re not talking about oil in this case. This is simply gold that’s coated with a dark platinum-like metal called ruthenium. However, you can give gold a black/brownish tint by alloying gold and copper and then treating it with potassium sulfide.
Purple gold
This is gold created by blending gold, aluminum and a metal called indium. It’s a very soft type of gold that can be fashioned into more intricate pieces.
Presented with this information, critical thinkers might wonder: Is colored gold valued differently than pure gold? The answer is typically more complicated than you might think. Gold jewelry is valued based on the amount of pure gold contained within it, which is measured in karats, along with other alloys that are mixed into it. If the additional alloys are more valuable (such as palladium in white gold, versus copper in rose gold) then this could have an impact on the overall value of the piece. However, white and yellow gold are often similarly valued.
If you’re interested in selling gold jewelry or looking to add new pieces to your collection, Doylestown Gold Exchange can help.
For more than 20 years we’ve helped people in Bucks County who are buying or selling gold get the best price for their valuables. Stop by our store today so our experts can assess your pieces and make an offer based on that day’s prices.
