Gold - the element Au, was one of the first known and most important metals to mankind.The history of gold is revolves around it's magical, religious and artistic qualities. It has been the foundation of kingdoms and conquests for millennia. Until recently, the gold standard defined and stabilized the world's currency system.

Although gold is fairly pleniful on earth, finding and producing gold demands great effort and hazard in return for a small amount of the beautiful yellow metal. For example, in South Africa, almost 70 million tons of earth have to be turned over and milled through in order to produce just 500 tons of gold. This seems like a lot of gold, and it is. If we only used it for jewelry and adornment - but as it sets the standard for coinage, we always need more.

The beauty of gold is that it won't tarnish, rust, or corrode, and though it's very strong, it is also the most malleable of all metals. It can be pounded into sheets that are 100,000'ths of an inch thick.

Pure gold, however, is too soft to withstand the stresses of every-day wear, so it is alloyed with a mixture of metals like silver, copper, nickel, and zinc to give it strength and durability. Gold karatage, noted by a number followed by "k" indicates purity, or how much of the actual metal in the jewelry is gold.

Karatage is expressed in 24ths, making 24k gold 100% gold. (See chart at right)

The color of gold is determined by two factors:

•The type of metal alloys included in it

•The percentage of each metal alloy

Yellow Gold

18 K gold has a very rich saturated color. That is because18k gold contains more of the precious metal than 14k gold. It is composed of 75% gold, which is alloyed with other metals to make it strong enough to withstand every-day wear.

14k gold is composed of only 58.3% gold, and 41.7% other metals that give it strength, therefore, its gold color is not as intense as 18k gold. 14k gold is most commonly found in cases where strength is most important, like in earring backs and bracelet clasps and many lockets that need to open and close frequently. It has the advantage of being stronger (because of the alloys) and can be used thinner, and therefore less expensively for the consumer.

White Gold

White gold is actually gold, that is alloyed with tin and/or nickel to give it the white color. There is no true, natural white gold.
Because 18k white gold is 75% gold, and 14k white gold is 58.3% gold, jewelry made from these metals has a slight yellow color. To enhance the whiteness, almost all white gold is plated with rhodium, a shiny, white metal which is extremely hard. Depending on the amount of wear to a piece of jewelry, over time this rhodium plating may wear off, revealing the original metal color. Re-plating is a simple process that can be done to restore your jewelry's whiteness if needed.

Keep your gold jewelry away from harsh chemicals such as chlorine and cleaning fluids. This will reduce daily abrasions and prolong gold's luster. To clean gold jewelry, use a solution of warm water and detergent-free soap and wash gold gently with a soft-bristled brush (a dull tooth brush works well). Store gold pieces separately in soft cloth bags or original boxes to protect them from the exposure to harsh daily elements.