Posted by u/MoonSugarGirl 14 hours ago
Does anyone have an idea as what this might be? Found in a box that belonged to a family member. Very heavy with a strong magnetic pull. No other information is known. (Not mine, posting for a friend not on Reddit). THIA.
My guess is that it's a cathode terminal from some sort of electrolysis setup. That would explain the rust spot and its organic shape. In other words I think it's an iron rod with some other metals plated onto it unevenly.
Yep, this was going to be my guess as well
This is sort of a guess but my Dad has pieces of stainless metal that are shaped similarly, though not as big. They're from the bottom of an electroplating bath. The pieces he has are a result of the metal electroplating contamination on the bottom of the tank. This one must have been in there a long time before it was fished out.
I'm no expert so take from this what you will. If it was gold, it would weigh several kg. Like 4 or 5. But since it's got a magnetic pull, we can rule that out. Also, given there the gold colour has not tarnished/oxidised over time, you can rule out some other metals like copper. The curved shape and 'flat side' I think it's a by-product from a process. Given the colour I'm guessing gold plating or some type of metallurgy.
Fools gold? Brass?
It looks similar in shape to these [electrolytically-refined nickel nodules](https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nickel_electrolytic_and_1cm3_cube.jpg) and [electrolytically-refined copper nodules](https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Copper_nodules.jpg) ... but yellow. So probably potatoes?
what’s a potato?
gold plated iron cast of something. looks aquatic, so maybe it’s s cast iron replica of a piece of coral (or something similarly aquatic) and either gold plated or bronzed. like they do with baby shoes.
Yeah, I thought it looked so organic, myself. Specifically, my mind jumped to spent Cedar seedpods that someone gold-plated for some reason. Then I thought "That's absurd. It would probably catch on fire during the plating process."
Pic of cedar pods...
[http://speciesinfonb.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Eastern-White-Cedar-Seeds-450x300.jpg](http://speciesinfonb.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Eastern-White-Cedar-Seeds-450x300.jpg)
Wild guess that is likely wrong: gold/iron alloy. This looks so weird, I’m hopeful that someone can give you a confident response.
Its used in the process of chrome plating and similar ones ( Its used in the beginning of this process ). I worked for a company that did this and can confirm its for this purpose. You can look up this process online as I dont remember it enough to explain it well.
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Yea well. They just wouldn’t go away so I thought I’d make a feature out of them.
What does ‘THIA’ stand for? Edit: Spelling
Thank You In Advance. The H is close to the Y on the keyboard.
Whatever it is, I would not handle it with bare hands until it is known. Heavy metal toxicity is no joke. It's probably harmless, but not worth the risk to your health and your family.
Could try posting it on r/WhatsThisRock
Is that a bullet on the back side?
Gold played something with an iron core. Have it tested or test it yourself.
I've seen something of a very similar shape but cant think of the proper name for it... Its was an industrial process with liquid metal but the pipeline was leaking causing the buildup of all the tear drop shapes.
Gold plated haemorrhoids
Can't be gold since gold and silver are not magnetic. Looks decorative.
The shape reminds me of what you might see welding in water.
A box of golden puffs that got wet one time. I am, 100% on this. That’s what it is :)
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Omg. I forgot about that stuff too! It was yummy.
So a long time ago on an archaeology dig we thought we found a hearth thanks to magnetic detection, but, it turned out it was a form of manganese oxide detected through 4 feet of earth by an electromagnet. A quick review of my failing memory reminds me that manganese is used in a wide variety of industrial uses and is paramagnetic. If this the byproduct of some process it could be some sort of manganese compound, but it's just my best guess.
Looks like a gold nugget
I doubt OP would be able to hold it in one hand if that's what it was. Gold is almost twice as dense as lead.
What strain is this?
Since all the good answers were taken I am going to suggest that its fossilized dragon poop and probably worth a fortune.
Looks like a sculpture when pulled out of a mould of ants nest. You kill the ants and fill the ground with metals, you then pull out the finished piece which looks like this
It’s definitely not that, those produce a completely different shape
Generally your magnetic materials are Cobalt, Neodymium, Gadolinium, Dysprosium, Titanium, Zirconium, Erbium, Terbium, and Holmium. These can be magnetic on their own. But none are gold in colour.
also iron and most steels.
Maybe measure weight and volume to figure out the density.
That’s some cracking peanut brittle for sure.
It seems a bit too shiny, I also think it's probably plated.
A miniature Lovecraftian monstrosity?
It looks like a bronzed succulent. Like someone took their first succulent and wanted to keep it forever as a magnet. People will bronze the weirdest sh\*t because of sentimental value.
Midas’s Kidney Stone
Looks like gold plated lava, rich in iron. Edit: also looks like a bunch of pine ones that someone dipped in iron, put in water quickly to cool then gold plated.
As someone said earlier it appears to be a steel or iron rod that was used for electrolysis and has accumulated some type of metal. Only a couple of things have a metallic luster similar to gold, brass, copper, or a combo of the 3 and all of those would tarnish. Is it brittle or soft? You wont hurt the value by testing it with a hammer because it's most likely only worth its melt value. To see if the outside is really gold, you'll have to test it with acid. The quickest and cheapest way to do so would be to take it to a pawn shop or a jeweler and ask if they will test it for you. Im sure they could do it for free because its a simple test. The only other thing i could think of is what someone else said about underwater welding pieces. Also just because its magnetic doesn't rule out the possibility of gold because when melted, gold can alloy with ferrous metals contaminating it and making it magnetic. But pure gold or gold alloyed with nonferrous metals such as common jewelry at 14k are not magnetic.
It's definitely gold plated . Muriatic acid, better known today as hydrochloric acid, is a simple, corrosive liquid with well-studied chemical properties. When gold is subjected to treatment with muriatic acid alone, nothing happens. But when \muriatic acid is combined with nitric acid to treat gold, the gold dissolves. test it yourself.
Was your family member Pandora?
It could be a fulgurite. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fulgurite
Why not take it to a pawn shop, not to sell it ofc but those people know metals
Is this maybe blister copper with some kind of plating? Or made of some other metal in a similar way?
It looks like one of those things formed when someone pours molten metal into an underground wasp nest or ant hills. Plenty of videos on YouTube. The end result is something similar. Plus, the dirt stuck on parts of this thing does support my theory I guess.
Gold plated popcorn, for when you want gold stuck in your teeth.
A "gold nugget" paperweight or door stop?
Hey, I'm in the same group as your friend 😂