found mystery gold today. best way to clean?

[Auby]

so today i found this mystery piece of metal in my girlfriends front yard with my new fisher f2... it is heavy and appears to be gold but there is lots of dirt stuck to it. it may be only gold plated but it seems to show through the back as well. any ideas what it could be and the best way to clean it without damaging it? tried soaking it in hot soapy water and used a toothbrush to clean it and got a bit of off. here is pictures of the front and the back, any suggestions as to what it could be and the best way to clean it much appreciated. thanks and happy hunting!

 

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[CoinandRelicMan]

Looks plated maybe but still it would be nice to see what it is. Some lemon juice maybe ? Wait for some others to chime in perhaps

 

[against the wind]

Congrats on your find.
You can't hurt real gold, if it is real, it should be easier to clean

 

[digger27]

Just a guess, but a semi educated one.
I have seen that pattern before on a few pics from other hunters.
The front or back cover of a pocket watch which is usually not as thick as the body parts.

As far as gold one of the greatest finds of my life was this watch which came out of the ground dirty as heck and black as coal.
I had no idea it was actually gold colored till I took a green scrubby to this thing and used lots of elbow grease for a long time until this emerged.
I was floored.
Rolled gold which is still a plating process but about 100 times thicker than ordinary plated jewelry.
There is enough gold in this thing that ARA will actually accept it and pay me for the gold content...not that I will ever send it in to be melted.
For some reason rolled gold, or at least mine, did not come out of the ground clean like the other 35 10-22k gold targets I have dug in my career.

The last pic shows a rolled gold watch with a cover with a similar pattern.

 

[sutphin]

AUBY AUBY WHAT DID YOU FIND . MAKE SURE TO DILUTE THE LEMON JUICE WITH WATER OR IT WILL BURN UP IN NO TIME. STRAIGHT LEMON JUICE CAN DESTROY CERTAIN METALS IF LEFT UN ATTENDED OR NOT MIXED WITH LITTLE WATER.

 

[Auby]

AUBY AUBY WHAT DID YOU FIND . MAKE SURE TO DILUTE THE LEMON JUICE WITH WATER OR IT WILL BURN UP IN NO TIME. STRAIGHT LEMON JUICE CAN DESTROY CERTAIN METALS IF LEFT UN ATTENDED OR NOT MIXED WITH LITTLE WATER.

Heres some updated picture's, as you can see using hot soapy water and a toothbrush didnt get me very far. This thing is caked in dirt! Is lemon juice and water the safest way I could clean this? What is the ratio for water and lemon juice? Also using that technique am I supposed to just let it soak or should I be brushing it as well? Show here is a picture of the item after 30 minutes of warm soapy water and toothbrush action. You can make out a design of some sort but still cant tell what it is for certain. Also shown is a photo next to my first gold I found and my first wheat penny, a 1946, I found this morning in the same area where I found the mystery gold!

 

[Erik in NJ]

I think it's a rotted (possibly gold plated or just gold colored) zinc lid to a compact from the first half of the 20th C--though that pattern may have been used on watches, I highly doubt this is part of a pocket watch. I would just put it in straight lemon juice or white vinegar and keep and eye on it.

 

[Auby]

I think it's a rotted (possibly gold plated or just gold colored) zinc lid to a compact from the first half of the 20th C--though that pattern may have been used on watches, I highly doubt this is part of a pocket watch. I would just put it in straight lemon juice or white vinegar and keep and eye on it.

Thats a good guess, it rings in at a 61 to 63 steady nickel. Zinc tends to be in the 50s on my machine so could be close enough. Any way to tell if its gold and not just gold coloured? The only reason I think it is gold is because the rest of it seems to be rotted out but the gold is still shining through... my opinion is that it is lightly plated. If it wasn't gold I would assume that it would not still shine the way it does byt I could be wrong. Thanks for your suggestion will post again after I try the lemon juice trick!

 

[Crispin]

get a frying pan, then take a piece of Aluminium foil, crinkle it a little, and lay it in the bottom of the pan. Put two scoops of baking soda in. Then place object on the aluminum. Heat to just below a boil. The baking soda will bubble up through the pan. If bubbles form the the object itself then you have a noble metal which may be gold. We can run more tests if that is positive. This will absolutely not hurt the piece.

 

[Breezie]

Judging by the pattern, it appears to be the remains of a ladies loose powder compact or rouge compact or a plated cigarette case probably from the Art Deco era. You may want to go back to the area to see if you can find more pieces.

WELCOME to the Forum and CONGRATS on your new finds! It's a wonderful hobby! BTW, don't wash your dirty finds in the lavatory or sink; it's upsets us ladies!


Breezie