When people hear about 24 Karat gold, they get a particular image in mind. 24K is considered to be the highest quality that you can get in gold–pure gold. In jewelry, it’s clear that 24K means that you’re dealing with the purest gold on the market. But, does the gold you find in nature carry that same label?
Are gold nuggets 24K? Gold that comes straight from the mine is not pure in most cases. Usually, it has around an 80 to 90 percent purity level. 24K gold is 99.9 percent pure gold. So, no, they typically are not 24K.
If you have been thinking about investing in gold nuggets versus gold bars, it’s essential to know the difference in the purity ratings of each. That way, you can avoid losing money and make the right financial decisions for you. This guide will help you understand the details behind this common misconception.
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Are Gold Nuggets 24K?
They are not, plain and simple. Gold that is found in mines is mixed with other metals and elements, which means that you can expect a purity between 80 to 90 percent. 24K gold is far, far purer, and cannot be found in nature unless it is a brand-new, unheard-of circumstance.
What Does 24K Mean?
24-Karat gold is a marker that designates that a level of purity out of 24. So, if you had an alloy that was 1K, that means that 1/24th of that alloy’s weight is pure gold. 24K, therefore, means that it is 100 percent pure.
In trade, we all know that getting completely pure gold is extremely difficult. That is why most companies and jewelers will allow it to be 99.9 percent pure. That level of purity is not found in the wild, which means that a gold nugget would be almost impossible to find at a 24K gold rating.
How Is 24K Gold Made?
To get 24K gold, a jeweler would have to take raw gold nuggets and melt them down. From there, he would have to separate other metals and impurities from the gold. Afterward, he would take the molten gold and pour it into a wax casting that would create a bar of gold.
How Is 24K Jewelry Made?
When it comes to making 24K gold jewelry, jewelers shape and twist the gold into a wearable shape. Traditionally, jewelry made with gold would need to be “pounded out” to get the shape it needs to have. However, better tools made that a process of the past.
In the art of jewelry making, jewelers may use wax molds or similar methods to create gold rings or other forms of jewels. Either way, the process does not involve adding alloys. It is simply a way to mold the already malleable gold into the shape desired.
Is It Possible to Find A 24K Gold Nugget?
In theory, it could be possible. In practice, it’s impossible. For a 24K gold nugget to exist, you would need to have:
- A Core of Pure Gold, No Rocks Included. In other words, it would have to be a large clump of pure, unadulterated gold left in the dirt with no impurities gripping to it whatsoever. Nature does not work that way. Even having rocks on the outskirts of the nugget could lower the karat quality.
- Nothing in The Outskirts of The Nugget. You cannot have a stream of copper, any crumbs of silica, or anything else that could be blocking most of the nugget for it to be a 24K gold nugget.
- The Gold Inside the Nugget Cannot Be an Alloy. In nature, most gold nuggets have gold that is an alloy—a mixture of gold and other metals. With 24K gold, you are not dealing with an alloy. Finding this in nature is exceedingly rare.
A 24K nugget would be a lump of pure yellow gold. It would have no rocks in the center, no alloy components, and no streams of silver or copper nearby. The chances of that happening are so slim that it’s practically impossible.
Is It Worth Investing in Gold Nuggets?
Gold, in any shape or form, can be a valuable investment if you view it as a long-term option. Unlike stocks or bonds, gold does not go out of business, nor does it require you to perform maintenance of it. While the price of gold can decrease, it’s not going to fall to zero anytime soon.
Believe it or not, investing in gold nuggets is often better than investing in gold bars. This is because they are pricier and retain their value better than standard gold bars. Confused? You’re not alone, but don’t worry. There is a logical explanation to this that may shock new investors.
Why Are Gold Nuggets More Valuable Than Gold Bars?
Believe it or not, the value of gold nuggets is not inherently based on the purity of the gold. If you had a gold bar and a gold nugget with equal quantities of gold, the nugget would still be worth more. This is because gold purity one of the lesser factors that go into determining the nugget’s value.
Gold nuggets are, by weight, more expensive than gold bars are. This is because finding gold nuggets that are high in weight is extremely rare in nature, which makes people pay a premium price for the rare find.
With gold bars, you can melt down tons of low-karat alloys to create a bar of pure gold. Knowing this, they are far less rare, and the price you pay is dependent on the exact price of gold as the market knows it.
Should You Melt Down Your Gold Nugget?
Probably not, especially if you are dealing with a larger nugget. The value of the gold nugget will remain larger than the raw value of the gold inside it. The best way to invest in a gold nugget is to keep it somewhere safe and wait for the prices of gold to rise.
As the price of gold rises, so does the premium on the rarity of the gold nugget’s size. That is why melting it down just does not make any sense.
How Can You Buy or Sell Gold Nuggets?
Gold nuggets are often traded on online marketplaces that specialize in gold and precious metal investments. The more reputable the platform, the more likely it is that you will be able to buy or sell gold nuggets reliably—and get the best price on them.
Though it’s best to go for a site like GoldFeverProspecting, or through licensed online auctioneers, it’s also possible to buy, sell, and trade gold nuggets on sites like eBay. When it comes to finding a good platform, make sure that the nuggets you bid on are legitimately gold and not a hoax.
Conclusion
While they may be more expensive than your average gold bar, gold nuggets are not 24K. At most, you might be able to find a nugget that’s 21K or 22K. Pure gold just does not exist in nature—or at least, it’s exceedingly rare.
The reason why you won’t find a 24K gold nugget is simple. In nature, gold found in mines, and it’s mixed in with a wide variety of other stones and metals. Finding it in its purest, most unadulterated form doesn’t happen in large quantities.
Despite the lack of purity, gold nuggets are still pricier than standard gold bars of the same weigh. If you want to invest in gold, going for a gold nugget and keeping it in storage is often the best way to go about it.