Large Black gold nugget found -- do I clean it?

[AU79 Prospector]

Hello everyone! First post here but long time reader

I recently found the biggest gold nugget of my life highbanking -- Weighing in around 6 grams. What's unusual about it is that.... it's coated with something black (manganese oxide I am guessing). My claim is in Virginia near an old hard rock mining operation.

I used soap and a toothbrush to bring out more of the gold color... but now I'm not sure what to do with it... do I clean it more? Put it in a rock tumbler? Muriatic acid? Or leave it Au natural? Would love to hear your thoughts.

 

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[bobw53]

I've done a lot of research on this -- apparently one of the best ways to clean jewelry that does not have stones in it is actually using a tumbler with small stainless steel shot is to burnish the gold. I tested this out on my wedding band and it looks AMAZING -- nearly brand new!. Because the stainless steel shot is bigger than the crevices in the nugget , it won't burnish that part so it should remain black to give it a cool 3D look. The chemical methods will get rid of all the black -- it would be clean but with no personality as people above have pointed out. I'll post the outcome when done.

A gold nugget and gold jewelry are MILES apart as far as properties go.. Gold is SOFT, REALLY SOFT.. A ring, 14k or so... only 14/24ths gold, 58% or so...

There is a reason that jewelry isn't 24k(100%) gold, it would never last, its almost like bubble gum... In contrast jewelry (14K) is essentially a steel girder or a
cannon ball.

I understand wanting to keep the black pockets, that's cool. I would suggest GENTLE.. Walnut shells (there are places that sell them impregnated with
rouge, so they polish).. All kinds of other crazy GENTLE methods out there.

Be kind to that lump of gold, those don't come along very often.

 

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[mikep691]

DO NOT DO ANYTHING TO IT. It's not about the gold, it's about what you found.

 

[AU79 Prospector]

A gold nugget and gold jewelry are MILES apart as far as properties go.. Gold is SOFT, REALLY SOFT.. A ring, 14k or so... only 14/24ths gold, 58% or so...

There is a reason that jewelry isn't 24k(100%) gold, it would never last, its almost like bubble gum... In contrast jewelry (14K) is essentially a steel girder or a
cannon ball.

I understand wanting to keep the black pockets, that's cool. I would suggest GENTLE.. Walnut shells (there are places that sell them impregnated with
rouge, so they polish).. All kinds of other crazy GENTLE methods out there.

Be kind to that lump of gold, those don't come along very often.

Appreciate the comments. Tumbling is actually very gentle process - no gold is removed at all. I have a lot of 22K jewlery and they are cleaned up beautifully using this method. The gold nugget is close to 22K after having a jeweler look at it. I agree though, 24K stuff probably should go into a tumbler.

 

[johnedoe]

What part of "Don't do anything to it and Collectors value in present condition" Don't you understand

 

[AU79 Prospector]

If i was going to sell it I wouldn't touch it. No argument there.... But if I'm never going to sell it, the collectors value is not as important... I am the collector in this situation =) I probably should of stated that at the start. I really want to clean it JUST A BIT to bring out the shine a bit more because in everyday life it looks like a dirty rock. (In the perfect sunlight conditions it does shine.. it took me forever to get the right picture to post in my video).The point of the thread was to figure out what were my options. I appreciate EVERYONE's feedback. The real value of this nugget to me was the adventure of finding it--- THAT was priceless and worth far more than the $500-750 value of the nugget. That being said, if it was a 6oz nugget, I probably wouldn't clean it

 

[johnedoe]

Well.... Your nugget do as you wish.... I'm outa here.

 

[bobw53]

I'd shine her up too..

Natural nugget, blah blah blah, collector value blah blah blah... It looks like a lump of coal... I'd say collector value is
right around spot value..

Its not a particularly pretty nugget, its not a uniquely shaped nugget..

Go to show your new next door neighbor that YES there is gold in the neighborhood... Pull out your heavy black rock and he'd
think you're crazy.

Make that little sucker pretty.. I would.

I'm sure you've all looked at this site.. There are some nuggets there, around the same size that have black pits in 'em... I'm
going to say they shined them up.. And now they are pretty.

Medium sized natural gold nuggets for sale. Buy gold nuggets.

I'd get some wire and encapsulate it.. Like they do for some crystals, like a little wire net... and put it on my keychain.

 

[geotaughtme]

NO ACID!! I agree with the others, it may have bonded to Palladium or another PT group metal. Could be a rare piece, can you do a simple specific gravity test? then have it checked out with a Mass Spec (not a XRF) Nice piece, Joe

 

[AU79 Prospector]

NO ACID!! I agree with the others, it may have bonded to Palladium or another PT group metal. Could be a rare piece, can you do a simple specific gravity test? then have it checked out with a Mass Spec (not a XRF) Nice piece, Joe

I just put it through the tumbler for a little bit. It looks great! (will post a video tomorrow) I compared it to my 22K jewelry and some small nearly 24K pickers -- it definitely has a slightly different color -- it must have another metal with it. Not sure how to go about finding a mass spec... maybe a university lab? I will look into it. Why not an XRF? I know these are cheaper, so maybe not as accurate?

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

That one has not moved down the stream in a very long time, there are more nearby.

...here is what I would expect the value to be if you sold it to a gold dealer.

6 grams = 92.5 grains
$1240 / 480 grains per oz. = $2.58 per grain x 92.5 grains = $239 x say 1.15 (15% over spot due to size) = $275
Of course the dealer will try and sell it for a bit more. That's just my convoluted way of doing things....


That value is conditional on finding a reputable buyer....more common is the guy that offers 80% spot regardless of size.

Looking forward to seeing some pictures.

 

[trdking]

Shine that thing up, its yours. You will kill 2 x s its value but its yours. Do what you want. I cant stick around for the carnage Im out

 

[Bumpstick]

Volcanic Gold! I ran across your U-Tube video and I have found several Black Gold Nuggets. So black you could not see any yellow at all. Tried the rub on my jeans with nothing. Rub on the curb in parking lot reviled yellow. Found that cleaning the most recent one in muriatic acid worked the best. Here is a link to my best finds. http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/metal-detecting-gold/480852-wisconsin-nugget.html I don't bother with a sluice box any more my back wont tolerate a shovel any more.

 

[Bonaro]

I would like to see a pic of it when its all cleaned up..

If you want a more aggressive tumbling action....get a step ladder and go up to your gutter. Collect a cup of the gravel that washes off your shingles. This gravel is actually sharp edged crushed ceramic. Using it for a tumbling medium is very good at cleaning dirty objects and the sharp edges tend to get deeper into the cracks and crevices.

 

[Bonaro]

Shine that thing up, its yours. You will kill 2 x s its value but its yours. Do what you want. I cant stick around for the carnage Im out

You are right, it's his...He could melt it down if he wants.

 

[Reed Lukens]

Nice nugget, older post... Time for a new pic
I just carried one in my pocket for years until the price of gold went way up... That way it's right there being shined all the time and you can pull it out and toss it in a pan anytime to get the OMG from people around you. It's a lot of fun to see their faces light up

 

[Goldwasher]

It's not worth 2x spot automatically..shining it up some isn't bad. Giving it some shine with dark recess makes it pop and gives it character.

for the right buyer you may still get double spot.

the final buyer doesn't know what it looks like when it comes out of the ground .

Cleaning up a piece doesn't mean it loses value.

 

[AU79 Prospector]

I attached apicture of the nugget post tumbling. Double Click the picture to a high resolution image. Note the pits and crevices still have black manganese oxide on it to give it a nice texture. I know some will still cringe at the thought of me cleaning it... but I am happy with the results!


It has been awhile, but I found out a LOT about this nugget over the last few months. I had it analyzed with a $20,000 XRF machine. It is nearly 6% Silver, 93% gold. The silver is why the color is slightly 'dull' appearing in some of the photos (And maybe why it was caked in manganese oxide??). I had a few 'old timers' from the area take a look at it. Each one felt that this nugget looks like nothing like the typical nugget found on this claim (Which tends to be very rough, 23++ karats, rarely any silver in it). Our best guess is that I found a piece of gold that the 'old timers' from pre 1849 were attempting to refine by inquarting with silver... then accidentally 'dropped it', not to be seen again until I dug it out. AT first I was disappointed, but they reminded me that is is probably the rarest type of find -- none of them have ever heard of this before in this area. A few noted they had found evidence of 'slag' in the area showing they were actively trying to refine the gold. So I think I found a piece of history, not just the run of the mill nugget !

And no, I'm not going to melt it down!! =)

I would like to see a pic of it when its all cleaned up..

If you want a more aggressive tumbling action....get a step ladder and go up to your gutter. Collect a cup of the gravel that washes off your shingles. This gravel is actually sharp edged crushed ceramic. Using it for a tumbling medium is very good at cleaning dirty objects and the sharp edges tend to get deeper into the cracks and crevices.

 

[Goldwasher]

and you didn't affect the value either.


I would expect a higher silver content on the surface that's how it works. Silver on the surface leaching out from nature and forming a layer. Silver oxidizes black so it may not have been manganese oxide.

I don't think the old timers were doing much inquarting. They knew how to refine gold and that's not really the way you refine nuggets or fine gold. Not much of a reason to.

They also were very unlikely at that point to have other bases metals in the field to refine with. Especially pre- Comstock era.

 

[Blak bart]

I am trying to attach the picture of the nugget post tumbling. Click the picture to a high resolution image. Note the pits and crevices still have black manganese oxide on it to give it a nice texture. I know some will still cringe at cleaning it... but I am happy with the results!
View attachment 1535476

It has been awhile, but I found out a LOT about this nugget over the last few months. I had it analyzed with a $20,000 XRF machine. It is nearly 6% Silver, 93% gold. The silver is why the color is slightly 'dull' appearing in some of the photos (And maybe why it was caked in manganese oxide??). I had a few 'old timers' from the area take a look at it. Each one felt that this nugget looks like nothing like the typical nugget found on this claim (Which tends to be very rough, 23++ karats, rarely any silver in it). Our best guess is that I found a piece of gold that the 'old timers' from pre 1849 were attempting to refine by inquarting with silver... then accidentally 'dropped it', not to be seen again until I dug it out. AT first I was disappointed, but they reminded me that is is probably the rarest type of find -- none of them have ever heard of this before in this area. A few noted they had found evidence of 'slag' in the area showing they were actively trying to refine the gold. So I think I found a piece of history, not just the run of the mill nugget !

And no, I'm not going to melt it down!! =)

Totally bad A$$. On high res (click twice) it looks like an asteroid or somthing. Beautiful.

 

[AU79 Prospector]

and you didn't affect the value either.


I would expect a higher silver content on the surface that's how it works. Silver on the surface leaching out from nature and forming a layer. Silver oxidizes black so it may not have been manganese oxide.

I don't think the old timers were doing much inquarting. They knew how to refine gold and that's not really the way you refine nuggets or fine gold. Not much of a reason too.

They also were very unlikely at that point to have other bases metals in the field to refine with. Especially pre- Comstock era.

I guess I will never know for sure Goldwasher... but a close geology friend of mine (who knows Virginia inside and out) feels its not natural and a man made ingot of some sort... with silver added... but it was done in a non standard way so its very confusing. In the end it's all speculation - but to me a good story that goes along with a nugget makes it that much more intriguing! I really appreciate your thoughts in this thread - you are clearly a seasoned vet who knows his stuff!