We've all seen the classic western movies: The grizzled old prospector reaches into his gold pan, pulls out a nugget, and bites it to determine its authenticity. To the untrained eye, it can be difficult to tell the difference between a real gold nugget and a nugget of iron pyrite--that's why iron pyrite is also referred to as "fool's gold." However, gold has distinctive properties that iron pyrite and similar minerals do not, and a modern-day prospector takes advantage of these differences to decide whether or not that flash in the pan is a real gold nugget.
- White porcelain plate (or other hard white surface that doesn't stain)
- Nail
- Penny
- Nugget of mystery mineral
Show More
Instructions
-
-
1
Rub the mineral across the plate. Look at the color of the streak left on the surface: if it's black you have iron pyrite or another mineral, if it's yellow you have gold.
-
2
Push the nail into the nugget as hard as you can. If it makes a dent, the nugget is gold; if it doesn't, the nugget is iron pyrite.
-
-
3
Scratch the penny hard across the surface of the nugget. If the nugget leaves a yellow mark on the penny, it's real gold.
-
4
Hold the nugget up to the light and turn it in your hand. If it sparkles, it's iron pyrite; if it shines, it's real gold.
