What is Green Gold? Is it Real? Is it Magnetic and Hypoallergenic? Does it Tarnish, Corrode and Rust?

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What is green gold? Is it real or fake?

Is green gold more valuable than yellow gold?

Is it magnetic?

Does green gold tarnish, rust and oxidize?

Learn it all and more in my guide below.

Here’s an awesome quiz about green gold. Take it after you’ve read my guide.

What is Green Gold? Is it Real? Is it Magnetic and Hypoallergenic? Does it Tarnish, Corrode and Rust?

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 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 can be natural or man-made.

Natural green gold is called electrum.

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.

Is Green Gold Natural? Is Raw Green Gold Real? Do Green Gold Ores Exist? How is it Mined?

Yes, green gold is natural and real. In it’s natural form green gold is called Electrum.

Green gold ores exist. They’re are the same ores yellow gold is extracted from. In mining gold and 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.

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.

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.

Except from 24k gold (pure gold) all other forms of yellow gold tarnish and the only difference is the speed of tarnishing. Higher-karat yellow gold tarnishes slower than lower-karat gold.

Except for pure silver (fine silver with 100% purity) all other forms of silver tarnish, 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 jas 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 bleach. Bleach and chlorine within it cause quick discoloration of green gold and I advise you 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 can 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 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 can easily dissolve 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.

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.

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.

Is Green Gold Hypoallergenic?

Yes, green gold is hypoallergenic.

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. Silver is hypoallergenic too.

Copper, zinc and especially nickel are common allergenic metals. But the percentage of these metals in a green gold alloy is so small 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 know metal allergies.

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 contain more silver in its alloy.

19k green gold is also available on the market. But it’s rarer than both 14k and 18k green gold and this type has the strongest green tint of the three.

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 include IRA approved gold 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 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 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.

IRA-approved silver bullion (coins and bars) qualifications and requirements

Green gold bars and coins are a rarity on the market.

I did throughout research and found that Valcambi is a major produces of gold bars available in weights from 1gram to 50grams.