# Gold Wash?



## publius (Sep 5, 2012)

I have noted that some of my silver feedstock has a gold tint to it. I came across a listing on eBay that indicates that some of the articles (broken and damaged sterling silver) have a gold wash. What is "gold wash(ed)?" and is it added value or hype?

Robert.


----------



## Geo (Sep 5, 2012)

its an extremely thin layer of gold plating.


----------



## publius (Sep 5, 2012)

Thank you Geo. Is it related to "gold tone(d)?" So with gold washed sterling silver, in small quantities I should just treat this as a contaminate?


----------



## philddreamer (Sep 5, 2012)

> So with gold washed sterling silver, in small quantities I should just treat this as a contaminate?


I would. And if you run the "contaminated" silver thru your silver cell, you'll recover the gold as a sludge.

Phil


----------



## maynman1751 (Sep 5, 2012)

Vermeil ( /ˈvɜrmɪl/ or /vərˈmeɪ/; French: [vɛʁˈmɛj]) is a combination of sterling silver, gold, and other precious metals, commonly used as a component in jewelry. A typical example is sterling silver coated with 14 carat (58%) gold. To be considered vermeil, the gold must be at least 10 carat (42%) and be at least 2.5 micrometres thick. In the US, sterling silver covered with a base metal (such as nickel) and plated with gold cannot be sold as vermeil without disclosing that it contains base metal.

The word "vermeil" is a French word which came into use in the English language, mostly in America, in the 19th century as an alternative for the usual term silver-gilt[1].


----------

