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Coarse and Rounded Gold
Gold is very unique and can be very deceptive. Take a look at the two nuggets below. The small one of the right has never been cleaned and still has its desert patina on it. The larger nugget on the left was cleaned with an ultrasonic cleaner. When you look at these two nuggets what do you think about where they came from? One looks to be a river worn, rounded piece and the other one is a more of a dry placer coarse piece. It even has a pointy set of "horns". Now I'm sure you've seen and maybe even found coarser gold, so have I but with these two pieces the larger one is the coarse one. Interestingly enough both of these pieces are from Arizona, both found with a metal detector, both found near Cleator, Arizona, and both found in the exact same crevice in 2003. Don't think all rounded or flat gold is far from the source and don't think all coarse gold is near it, its just not always the case. When gold gets trapped in the earth in crevices, cracks, etc. it becomes subjected to pressure form what surrounds it, and the natural expansion and contraction of cracks and crevices that occur with extreme temperature changes. These factors can really shape gold and often trick people into thinking they are right on the source or far from it. Just a few thoughts I wanted to share.
