246 METALS. 8i. Aurum. 



I. AURUM. Of a red dlfh -yellow colour not 

 tainiflied by the air, fofcifh and very tenacious, 

 not fonorous, exceedingly malleable and diidile, 

 fpecific gravity 19,300: burning in a red heat 

 with a fea-grecn light, and melting at a white 

 heat: Soluble only in nitro-muriatic acid :^nd 

 aivino- the folution a yellow colour: when melt- 

 ed with borax producing a ruby-coloured glafs. 



Gold. 



nati'vum. Not combined with other minerals, very ponderous, due-' 

 tile, viiibje in Its matrix, 

 ^urum nudum. 6^^^. »«'• xii. 3.^. 151. «. '■ 

 Aurum nativum. Wall, fyft' 2. p. 355. n. 1. 



"Native gold. Fhilr/.Tran/'. i-jc^b, p. ^S- 



Native gold. Ki>"iv an miner, z, p- .93. SchmeiJJer 2. ^. 23, 



Native gold. Tbojnjon chem. 4. /» 21. 



Native gold. Sonxerby Brit, min, I. /. HI. /• ^2. 



Found in the Tand of a Hream Hovving frojn jnoxxni Grog^an near 

 JrJ^/oiv in the county of Wtcklow iji Ireland, in Corn'wall and 

 Scotland, in the mines 0^ Peru and Chiti, Neiv Spain, Ja-va, 

 Siberia, tran/yhamay Spain, Hungary, France, and moft 

 countries o( Europe, generally near the furface or mixed with 

 fand in the beds of rivers : it is rarely found quite pure, but 

 almoft always mixed with filver, copper, or other fubRanccs, 

 giving more or lefs variation to its appearance or colour : itr 

 form is generally common, or imbedded in its matrix in va- 

 rious (hapes ; fo'metlmes it has decufi'atlng grooves on its fur- 

 face, or is cellular or plumofe, or refembling teeth, branches, 



^ briltles or hairs : in its cryilallized itate it is ufually in fmall 

 aggregate 6.rided tables with a right-angled 4-ridcd prifm 

 ending in a p.int or terminated at eiich end by an imperfea 

 4.rided prifm, in cubes, or fimple 3-fided or double 4-lided 

 pyramids : it has no perceptible lalle or fmell, and does not 

 alter or lofe its luftre by any expofure to the air or water: 

 its malleability is fuch, that one grain of gold may be beaten 

 fo thin as to cover 56^ fquare inches ; lo malleable, t^at an 

 ounce of gold upon filver wire is capable of being extended 

 more than 1 300 miles j and fo great is its tenacity, that a 

 gold wire 0,078 inch in diameter is able to fupport a weight 

 of 1 5,007 pounds avoirdupolfe without breaking. The largeft 

 lump of native gold known was brought from mdlo'Wf and 

 weighed 22 ounces; and contained in 24 parts, hncgold 21,, 

 fine filver ij, copper and iron alloy o^. 



