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Green gold is a real gold alloy made from gold and silver, with its distinctive greenish hue coming from the high silver content. Small amounts of copper, zinc, and nickel are sometimes added for durability.
Green gold exists in both natural and man-made forms. The natural variety is known as electrum, historically sourced from Lydia (modern Turkey) and now primarily from Anatolia, Nevada, and Russia.
Green gold isn’t magnetic and is considered hypoallergenic, as the trace amounts of allergenic metals like nickel are too small to trigger reactions.
However, green gold tarnishes and corrodes when exposed to substances like chlorine, bleach, saltwater, and certain acids. This green-colored gold alloy is available in 14k, 18k, and 19k varieties, with lower karats displaying a more pronounced green tint.
Green gold can’t be included in a Gold IRA account, as it doesn’t meet the required purity standards for IRA-eligible precious metals.
- What is Green Gold? Is it Real Gold? What is Green Gold Made of?
- Is Green Gold Natural? Is Raw Green Gold Real? Do Green Gold Ores Exist? How is it Mined?
- Is Green Gold Magnetic?
- Does Green Gold Tarnish? Does it Corrode, Rust and Oxidize?
- What is Green Gold Vermeil? Is it Real and Is it Common?
- Is it Possible to Turn Green Gold into Yellow Gold?
- Is Green Gold Hypoallergenic?
- Which Karats is Green Gold Available in?
- Is it Possible to Include Green Gold as Part of a Gold IRA Account?
Here’s an awesome quiz about green gold. Take it after you’ve read my guide.
Table of Contents
What is Green Gold? Is it Real Gold? What is Green Gold Made of?
Green gold is an alloy of gold and silver. It consist of 75% pure gold and 25% silver and it’s the silver content that gives a greenish hue to green gold. Zinc, copper and nickel are also often added to green gold alloy to strengthen it, though in trace amounts compared to silver.
Green gold can also be natural and natural green gold is called electrum.
Green gold ores exist and they’re are the same ores yellow gold is extracted from. In mining locales gold and silver are often found together and occasionally they make a natural alloy (Electrum) which can be mined.
Historically, a major Electrum source was Lydia, around the Pactolus River in modern Turkey. Anatolia is a primary source of Electrum nowadays. And smaller amounts have been found in Nevada, USA. Electrum is also mined in Russia, at the Talnakh Cu-Ni Deposit.
Note: In the early days of green gold manufacturing cadmium was added to the alloy to achieve a pronounced green tint. Just 2-4% cadmium was enough for this purpose (2% cadmium gives a light green tint, 4% cadmium gives a dark shade of green).
But, cadmium is no longer used as it’s highly toxic to humans.
Hey, you like green gold which means you probably like real, yellow gold as well, right? Check this out next if you answered yes!
Is There Green Gold Jewelry? Is it Real and Is it Common?
Yes, green gold jewelry exists, is real but uncommon. Green gold jewelry is very rare compared to yellow gold, rose gold and white gold variants.
I’ve gathered some example of green gold jewelry for you to check out. They’re right below.
Hey, you like green gold which means you probably like real, yellow gold as well, right? Check this out next if you answered yes!
What is Green Gold Vermeil? Is it Real and Is it Common?
Green gold vermeil is a type of gold vermeil jewelry where the sterling silver base is covered with a green gold plate.
Green gold vermeil is real but not common. Rose gold vermeil, white gold vermeil and yellow gold vermeil are more common in jewelry design than green gold vermeil.
Green gold vermeil is a novelty for those with big pockets and extravagant tastes.
Which Karats is Green Gold Available in?
Green gold typically comes in 18 karat and 14 karat options.
14k green gold has a more pronounced green tint than 18k green gold because it contains less pure gold more silver in its alloy.
Note: pure gold isn’t green, but a shade of orange.
| Green Gold Alloy Type | Gold (%) | Silver (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 18k Green Gold | 75 | 25 |
| 14k Green Gold | 58.3 | 41.7 |
19k green gold (79.1% pure gold and 20.9% pure silver) is also available on the market. But it’s rarer than both 14k and 18k green gold and this type has the weakest green tint of the three as it contains the least amount of silver.
Hey, you like green gold which means you probably like real, yellow gold as well, right? Check this out next if you answered yes!
Does Green Gold Tarnish? Does it Corrode, Rust and Oxidize?
Yes, green gold tarnishes. Green gold is an alloy of yellow gold and silver+ some other metals in trace amounts.
All yellow gold forms tarnish with the exception of 24k gold (pure gold) and the only difference is the tarnishing speed. Higher-karat yellow gold tarnishes slower than lower-karat gold.
All silver forms tarnish, with the exception of pure silver (fine silver with 100% purity)including the types that are alloyed with gold to make green gold.
Below are all the potential tarnishing-causing substances and their effect on green gold jewelry items.
- Fire. Fire tarnishes green gold. The heat from the flame will especially affect the high silver content in the alloy and cause it to change color. Brief flame exposure won’t hurt the green gold item in any way. Green gold doesn’t corrode, rust or oxidize when exposed to fire.
- Water. Green gold tarnishes when exposed to water. Water has a negative effect on silver and silver is a large part of green gold alloy. Saltwater and chlorinated water are especially damaging to green gold and can even corrode it.
- Chlorine. Chlorine tarnishes and corrodes green gold. Silver and copper chemically react to chlorine and start tarnishing quickly after the initial exposure. Prolonged green gold exposure to chlorine will cause it to corrode and oxidize.
- Toothpaste. Toothpaste doesn’t tarnish and corrode green gold. However, the abrasive particles in toothpaste make tiny, microscopic scratches on the surface of the green gold alloy. Over time this degrades the metal’s surface and diminishes its green tint and luster.
- Bleach. Bleach both tarnishes and corrodes green gold. The silver and copper in green gold are particularly vulnerable to this chemical. Bleach and chlorine within it cause quick discoloration of green gold and I advise you to keep bleach away from your green gold jewelry.
- Hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide tarnishes green gold, but doesn’t corrode and oxidize it. Typical hydrogen peroxide you find in your kitchen cupboard is a mild oxidant unlikely to cause significant damage or discoloration to your green gold jewelry items.
- Lemon juice. Lemon juice tarnishes green gold. The citric acid in lemon juice reacts with silver and causes discoloration. At first, that discoloration is barely perceptible. But, tarnish will spread and become more visible if you use lemon juice to clean your green gold jewelry. Don’t do it!
- Vinegar. Vinegar tarnishes green gold due to its acids reacting with the silver and copper content within the alloy. Prolonged exposure of green gold to vinegar will cause it to develop permanent tarnish and discoloration. Vinegar doesn’t corrode and oxidize green gold.
- Nitric acid. Nitric acid doesn’t tarnish green gold. However, nitric acid is very destructive to silver and easily dissolves it to create silver nitrate. Don’t get your green gold anywhere near nitric acid.
- Alcohol. Alcohol doesn’t tarnish or corrode green gold. You can use rubbing alcohol (isopropyl alcohol) to clean your green gold jewelry. However, I don’t recommend frequent cleaning of green gold with alcohol as alcohol dries out the metal and affects the copper content over time. The amount of copper in green gold alloy is small, but it’s not zero and eventually you’ll notice some tarnishing and patina with repeated cleanings.
- Makeup. Makeup tarnishes green gold when it contains zinc oxide. Makeup without zinc oxide doesn’t tarnish, corrode or oxidize green gold.
Hey, you like green gold which means you probably like real, yellow gold as well, right? Check this out next if you answered yes!
Is Green Gold Magnetic?
No, green gold isn’t magnetic.
Green gold is an alloy of yellow gold (yellow gold isn’t magnetic), silver (silver isn’t magnetic) and trace amounts of nickel, zinc and copper.
Nickel is magnetic, but zinc and copper aren’t. The mount of nickel in a green gold alloy is very small and not enough to elicit any magnetic reaction.
Is Green Gold Hypoallergenic or Allergenic?
Green gold is hypoallergenic. It’s not allergenic.
Green gold is made of yellow gold, silver and very small amounts of copper, zinc and nickel for added strength and durability. Yellow gold is hypoallergenic.
Copper, zinc and especially nickel are common allergenic metals. But the percentage of these metals in a green gold alloy is so small that they’re unlikely to cause an allergic reaction even in the most sensitive individuals.
This means green gold jewelry is hypoallergenic and safe for people with known metal allergies.
Hey, you like green gold which means you probably like real, yellow gold as well, right? Check this out next if you answered yes!
Is it Possible to Include Green Gold as Part of a Gold IRA Account?
No, it isn’t possible to include green gold as part of a gold IRA account. Green gold coins and bars aren’t IRA eligible and approved.
You can only include IRA approved gold bullion in your IRA account.
Other possibilities are IRA-approved silver, IRA-eligible palladium and IRA-approved platinum coins and bars.
Bullion from all these four precious metals has to meet strict requirement to be eligible.
For example, IRA-approved gold coins and bars must be 99.5% pure and must be produced by an IRA-approved mint. Small gold bars must meet exact weight specifications.
And IRA-eligible silver coins and bars must be at least 99.9% pure.
You can buy IRA-approved precious metals through an online dealer or a Safe U.S. gold IRA company. I recommend Augusta Precious Metals as one of the best gold investment companies in the USA.
You can read my review of Augusta Precious Metals here.
Green gold bars don’t exist.
I did thorough research and the closest thing I found was green gold bars from Valcambi. However, these aren’t bars made from green gold (75:25% gold to silver ratio), but .999 gold bars where gold was ethically sourced with Earth’s natural ecosystems in mind.
Green gold coins are no longer massively produced, but in the distant past they were much more common.
Good examples are electrum coins from Lydia and Byzantine Empire.
Hey, you like green gold which means you probably like real, yellow gold as well, right? Check this out next if you answered yes!
Is it Possible to Turn Green Gold into Yellow Gold?
Yes, it’s possible to turn green gold into yellow gold. However, it’s an intricate process that only a professional jeweler with the right tools and knowledge can do.
First, the jeweler melts the green gold. Second, they remove silver because silver gives a green tint to green gold. Third, they add other metals to the remaining yellow gold to increase the alloy’s strength and durability without changing it’s natural yellow color.
The jeweler then solidifies and reshapes the yellow gold alloy into a desirable jewelry item.
And that’s how to turn green gold into yellow gold.
What is Green Gold? Is it Real? Is it Magnetic and Hypoallergenic? Does it Tarnish, Corrode and Rust? Conclusion
Green gold is an alloy of gold and silver. It’s real gold that has a greenish hue due to high silver content. Zinc, copper and nickel are often added to green gold alloy to strengthen it.
Green gold is either natural or man-made.
Natural green gold is called electrum.
References:
- What is Green Gold Jewelry? (And Where to Buy It)- https://jewelryinformer.com/gold/green-gold/
- Why don’t more people work with green gold?- https://www.reddit.com/r/jewelers/comments/15yrw6b/why_dont_more_people_work_with_green_gold/
- Green Gold vs. Yellow Gold- https://www.reddit.com/r/EngagementRings/comments/14y6gru/green_gold_vs_yellow_gold/
- What Is Green Gold? Your Guide to Green and Other Gold Colors- https://www.coffinandtrout.com/what-is-green-gold-your-guide-to-green-and-other-gold-colors/
- Green Gold-Gold which contains a high proportion of silver, causing a greenish hue- https://www.josephjewelry.com/guide/glossary/green+gold
- Electrum- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrum
- An article on green gold- https://www.kalmarantiques.com.au/articles/an-article-on-green-gold/
- What is green gold?- https://www.renesim.com/en/pages/green-gold
Nikola Roza
Nikola Roza is a blogger behind Nikola Roza- SEO for the Poor and Determined. He writes for bloggers who don't have huge marketing budget but still want to succeed. Nikola is passionate about precious metals IRAs and how to invest in gold and silver for a safer financial future. Learn about Nikola here.
