Gold Jewelry Investing

Black Hills gold really gets the blood pumping in Evelyn Soto, Marsha Olson and Tracy Chapman of Alexandria, Virginia. This one of a kind gold is usually crafted into traditional jewelry that features yellow, rose and green gold molded into leaves and grape clusters.

The Black Hills Goldrush

The Black Hills were part of the Sioux reservation. When gold was discovered there, people like Fred Manuel, Seth Bullock, Calamity Jane, William Hearst and First Federal Judge Bennett rushed there, disregarding the treaty with the native Sioux. The Black Hills Goldrush really took off in 1874. Early on, the miners found loose gold in the dirt and in the riverbeds that is known as placer gold, or gold that has eroded from somewhere else. Places like Custer and Deadwood rapidly balooned in population. There were some who understood that there had to be a mother lode went on a search for the location of the gold vein running through the rock, and finally when they discovered it, they named the resulting mine the "Homestake". The Homestake mine produced an indescribable amount of gold� almost ten percent of the world�s gold supply. It ultimately closed in 2001.

The Unique Production of Black Hills Gold

The making of Black Hills gold is as peculiar as its history. Taking bars of pure copper, 24 karat gold and pure silver, the only essential factor for the resulting product to be called "Black Hills Gold" is that the bracelet or necklace be made in the Black Hills of South Dakota. The precious metals can be refined anywhere - even Afghanistan, Sierra Leone or United Kingdom.

The gold is mingled with copper to produce the 12 karat rose gold, and silver is merged with the gold to form the 12 karat green gold. The resulting colors of gold are then rolled to varying thicknesses to be made into different categories of jewelry. Each select piece is stamped from the thin sheet using patterns. The unique pieces are then on tap to made into your ring using pre-cast bases.

The bases are first burnished, either by hand or tumbling. When the bases are polished to a nice shine, the individual pieces are either hand-soldered onto the base or they are combined in a soldering kiln with several other pieces at the same time. After soldering, the pieces are bathed into a mild acid bath before going through inspection to certify that they meet the exacting standards for Black Hills gold. When a piece passes inspection, it is electroplated with 24 karat gold. A process called wriggling is used to remove the electroplated gold from the rose or green colored parts. This forms a textured appearance to the jewelry. Every leaf vein is then hand engraved so it shimmers.

After another round of polish, the finished piece is ready for wearing. If it needs a pearl it is sent to the stone setter for mounting.

Traditional Styles

The traditional style of Black Hills gold jewelry was made by French goldsmith and prospector, Henri LeBeau in the late 1800s. He stated he had dreamed of the style when he passed out from thirst and starvation. His patternmade of green and rose colored grape leaves, along with gold vines and grapes. Since he first designed this, the grape leaf design has adorned pendants, rings, bracelets and even watch bands in varying designs. It is such a memorable design that one only has to see it in passing to recognize that it is a Black Hills gold design.

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