Gold Mine find!!! Need insight!!?

[Cluton]

I found this in the Black Hills of South Dakota when I was 8 yrs old! This was in a huge pile of rocks from a mine! The mine was huge and this thing was in a pile from material from a blast! Is this the real deal? Or Fools gold? It's in a quartz type material with streaks all through at big fat chunks of "gold", there are many ounces of "gold" in this thing, and it is heavy! I had a man try to buy it off of me up there, but I couldn't sell it! He said it was high grade? Can you guys give me opinions please? It has a colored look to the "gold stuff", and it is beautiful either way! I just need to know if it's really gold?? Thanks!






And is there a way to test it?

[latrans]

You could try the streak test or acid test.

[George Looney]

Cluton,,,I know nuthin about gold,,,,but,,,,gold is soft,,try to scratch it with a needle,,if soft it's gold,,,hard and gritty it's not.

[Cluton]

Hey George, I just scratched it with knife and it was fairly soft, nothing really flaked off! Hmmm???? Thanks for reply, I've never shown it to anyone, so I figured I would let you guys see it!! it is colored, but I was told Black Hills gold is colored!??? Some of it has a regular dull gold tint to it! The quartz around it is very soft, like you could break it off!!? Maybe I just have Gold Fever!! lol

[joshuaream]

If you have a buddy with a metal detector, that might give you an idea if it's metal.

[Raymond G]

You can google “telling the difference between pyrite and gold” and get several hits. Basically, if you can press a knife into the metal without it flaking off it's probably gold. If it flakes off then it's pyrite. Gold is malleable... it’s fairly soft while pyrite forms is crystalline in nature and very hard. Also gold is a duller yellow and pyrite ranges in color, from silverfish to a brassy yellow. Also, I think a good metal detector can tell the difference between pyrite, which is a form of iron, and gold.
We find a lot of fools gold around here. Some of it’s real pretty, but it will break apart in cubical chunks pretty easy. I don’t know enough about it to really tell you one way or the other on yours. Either way, it’s a cool looking rock. Raymond

[wiseshanks]

How to Test a Rock for Gold | eHow.com

[Cluton]

Thanks guys, I'll check it out!! Appreciate the help!

[Dennis]

Looks like gold ore. Heres some kelsey Ca pocket gold in quartz and a piece acid etched to remove the quartz.

[Cluton]

Thanks Dennis, I hope it is! It's heavy!! I would have a fair amount of gold in this rock if it is truly gold!