How to Know If Gold Is in Quartz?

A piece of quartz is more than just an attractive rock; it may turn out to be hiding some gold inside. Miners often find gold encased in ores of rock along with quartz, so many gold-seekers will target veins of quartz in their search for the precious metal. If you've come across a piece of quartz and have reason to suspect that it has gold in it, use a few simple tools to investigate.

Things You'll Need

• Metal detector
• Magnifying glass
• Mortar and pestle

Show More

Instructions

1. • 1

     Wave a metal detector over the quartz. Quartz won't light up the detector, but gold will.

   • 2

     Examine the quartz closely with a magnifying glass. If it contains gold, you will probably see tiny specks or veins of gold.

   • 3

     Grind up the rock using a mortar and pestle if you don't see any signs of gold but want to check for gold seams and flecks inside the rock.