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Message:: [QUOTE="900fine, post: 299146, member: 6036"]Interesting article. Thanks, Doug ! Here's a statement which bothered me a bit : "...it is particularly tough to determine the "original flash of gold," what original surfaces look like on gold coins...it's not always the same color because the coins were struck from gold from different gold fields, or from gold with different amounts of copper or silver mixed in."" Regular issue US Gold coins are 90% gold and 10% copper*, so I can't see where one would see different luster based upon "different amounts of copper".  I've always assumed the gold was purified to .9999+ fine before mixing with 10% copper. Pure gold is just that - pure. It doesn't matter which gold field it came from. Before coining, it has been refined and lost almost all impurity; at that point "gold is gold is gold" regardless of origin.  Perhaps the copper was impure and shows different luster. Folks wouldn't be as picky about the purity of the copper. I would think the business community would not tolerate coins with less than 90% gold ! That's the whole point of the assay office - ensure the coins are "as advertised" and contain the proper amount of gold.  * Except very early issues and bullion[/QUOTE]