Is there Gold in Your Rock? Should You Crush It?

If you have found a lump of rock which appears to have golden flecks in it, what are the chances that it is real gold? Continue reading to learn about the types of golden minerals which could be present in your rocks, and to find out if it is worth crushing up your rock to get the gold out.

<This article contains links to Amazon products. As ever, there is no pressure to buy. Just enjoy the info>

Took my Uncle's mug gold panning last trip out since he had recently passed and loves this area of the country.

It might seem tempting to crush up a rock which has a hint of gold in it, but it is not necessarily the right thing to do. There are different reasons for this that we will get into momentarily, but for now, let’s assume that you are here because you think you have found gold ore, or gold in your quartz/rock. The first thing you have to do is identify what the golden material is… after all, there’s no point putting in the effort to crush up quartz if it doesn’t actually contain any gold.

You Found a Golden Rock – is it Real Gold?

There are good clues you can consider when identifying the gold in your rock.

1 – Location

Where was it found? We don’t need to know but you do. Was your rock found in an area where gold has been found before? This is easy to find out. You can check mindat.com which will record instances of specific minerals in the area where you found your rock. You are unlikely to find gold in areas which have not been previously mined for it.

But there is always the chance that you get lucky.

To find out if the location has previously been mined for gold, you can head to mindat or you can do a simple Google search. Type:

area + Gold Found

Or

Mineral types found in location

And you will get your answer.

2 – Ruling Out Other Minerals

It is far more likely that your quartz contains golden flakes of mica than actual gold. It is also more likely that your rock contains fool’s gold – pyrite – or one of the related minerals such as chalcopyrite or bornite, the “peacock ore” types. These can be beautifully golden.

Go back to your Google search of the location. Try searching instead for pyrite/mica/or chalcopyrite being found in the area. If it is and you are unsure, then you likely have a bingo.

Chalcopyrite looks like gold at first glance, but it doesn't have the lustre or the hardness.

3 – Hardness

If you think you have gold, you can check the hardness to ID your mineral.

Gold is malleable, meaning it is softer than your average metal. Pyrite, by comparison, is very brittle and breaks before it bends. Mica, on the other hand, forms in flakes which are very light, and can often be scratched with your fingernail. You cannot scratch gold or pyrite with your fingernail.

Luckily we already have a blog on how to test the Mohs hardness of a rock so you don’t have to go very far to find out how hard your rock is.

4 – Lustre

Gold pretty much looks like the gold in a wedding ring when you find it in the wild. There is little confusion when you find it. It looks like gold looks. Other golden minerals leave you wondering if it might be gold or it might be something else.

The only exception to this which I know of is when the gold is riding an iron horse (attached to iron which maybe rusty). Too many good panners have tossed back ironclad gold by accident.

Should You Crush Your Rock?

If you are pretty sure it is gold in the rock, then that still doesn’t mean that you should crush your rock. Why? Mineral specimens of gold wrapped around, veined through, or speckled on rocks can go for far more monetarily wise when kept whole as a specimen than the price you would fetch for the gold alone. Crushing might ruin the sample, therefore costing you money.

So if it is a cool sample, you should probably take it to an appraiser. You can get this service through your nearest university with a geology department. Appraisal costs money so don’t go down this path unless you are 100%. You might even take it to a jeweller and have them look at it first to save yourself some money.

Seen up close, you can tell why they call pyrite "fool's gold"

Should You Buy a Gold Testing Kit?

Of course, a gold testing kit will confirm not only that you have found gold in your rock, but a good one will also have different potions which test the purity of the gold and can assign a carat value. Which you can’t do by eye or touch.

So if you find gold in large quantities, these gold testing kits are very useful, particularly if you plan on selling your gold for the true market value. If you have found a one-off rock, then I don’t recommend you invest in a gold testing kit. Just find your nearest geologist and ask them – or perform the hardness test above.  You can also perform a streak test as described in this previous blog.

Gold Testing Kit Recommendations for Amazon.com

You have options! Gold panning and hunting is more popular in the US than in the UK. This is a good testing kit for professional gold hunters as it can differentiate between carat values. Karat values? One of the two.

This slightly cheaper version of a gold testing kit will do much of the same thing.

Gold Testing Kit Recommendations for Amazon.co.uk

We recommend this Gold, Silver and Platinum testing kit for those who need to identify gold and carat value professionally and often.

If you just need a simple set in a pinch, this cheaper, smaller version will do most of the same things.

How Do You Crush Your Rock?

There are different methods depending upon your budget and your patience.

Smash it with a Hammer like Thor

The easiest way to smash up a rock is with brute force and a hammer.

You might think it’s a good idea to run over it with your car but it is not. This is because rocks are harder (and pointier) than rubber.

When smashing rocks with a hammer please wear safety goggles (available here) and a dust mask (available here). Place your rock under a bit of old fabric you don’t mind destroying and then hit it. This will control the debris field.

If you want to do us a good turn, you can buy your rock hammer here on Amazon.com or here, on Amazon.co.uk.

Make Your Own Rock Crusher

You can make a rock crusher by yourself. Sounds cray cray but I have seen many a gold panner do this. You get one pipe and then a second pipe of slightly smaller diameter. You place something tough in the end of that second pipe to weigh it down and block it, then you place that slightly smaller pipe inside the larger one.

To use this device, place your rock in the bottom of the big pipe, then slide the second pipe in and batter away at it.

Buy a Manual Rock Crusher

You can actually buy a manual rock crusher on amazon because other people before you have thought the same thing about having gold in their rocks. Rock crushers cost you between £50 and £60 on Amazon.co.uk, or starting around $35 on Amazon.com for all our American followers.

Mica and schist can also look golden. The mica in the Scottish Highlands is often glittering gold flakes in the waterways.

How Do You Extract Gold from Crushed Rock?

Once you have crushed your rock down to as fine a powder as you can get it, you will still need to extract the gold out of the dust. The simplest way to do this is with a gold pan. Advanced panners can use the simple bowl of water and a running tap trick because they have experience with waterflow and how it affects your gold.

If you are a novice, grab yourself a gold pan and watch a few YouTube vids. The Lead Mining Museum in Wanlockhead also offers gold panning courses throughout the season.

Gold Pans and Panning Sets on Amazon UK

The XP gold panning starter kit is a good deal with great reviews. It contains everything you need to get started except the actual gold, which you are expected to find yourself.

If you just want the pan, then this one looks good. Any of those colours will show up the gold really well.

Gold Pans and Sets on Amazon.com

And finally, for those of you across the pond, get yourself a green pan or a blue pan for under ten bucks or you can go all out with the full set. We like the look of this Gold Rush set. It comes with it’s own carry bag – which is more important than you might think when you are carrying your kit out in the middle of nowhere.

What Does Gold in Quartz Look Like?

I searched high and low for a free-to-use example and couldn't find one, and you know we don't AI here, so instead you can browse examples of real gold ore and gold in quartz over at Geology.in.

Actual gold.