Gold is a chemical element with symbol Au (from Latin:
aurum) and atomic number *9, making it one of the higher
atomic number elements that occur naturally. In its purest form, it
is a bright, slightly reddish yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and
ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal and a group
*1 element. It is one of the least reactive chemical elements and
is solid under standard conditions. Gold often occurs in free
elemental (native) form, as nuggets or grains, in rocks, in veins,
and in alluvial deposits. It occurs in a solid solution series with
the native element silver (as electrum) and also naturally alloyed
with copper and palladium. Less commonly, it occurs in minerals as
gold compounds, often with tellurium.
