Gold (color)
Metallic gold
Metallic gold
-------------

### Gold (metallic gold)

At right is displayed a representation of the color **metallic gold** (the color traditionally known as *gold*) which is a simulation of the color of the actual metallic element gold itself—gold *shade*.

The source of this color is the ISCC\-NBS Dictionary of Color Names (1955\), a color dictionary used by stamp collectors to identify the colors of stamps—See color sample of the color Gold (Color Sample Gold (T) \#84\) displayed on indicated web page:

### Web color gold vs. metallic gold

[thumb\|right\|150px\|[Metallic](/wiki/Metallic_color "Metallic color") by nature](/wiki/File:GOLD_METALLIC_TEXTURE_%287241678418%29.jpg "GOLD METALLIC TEXTURE (7241678418).jpg")
The *[American Heritage Dictionary](/wiki/American_Heritage_Dictionary "American Heritage Dictionary")* defines the color metallic gold as "A light olive\-brown to dark yellow, or a moderate, strong to vivid yellow."

Of course, the visual sensation usually associated with the metal gold is its metallic shine. This cannot be reproduced by a simple solid color, because the shiny effect is due to the material's reflective brightness varying with the surface's angle to the light source.

This is why, in [art](/wiki/Art "Art"), a metallic paint that glitters in an approximation of real gold would be used; a solid color like that of the cell displayed in the adjacent box does not aesthetically "read" as gold. Especially in sacral art in Christian churches, real gold (as [gold leaf](/wiki/Gold_leaf "Gold leaf")) was used for rendering gold in paintings, e.g. for the [halo](/wiki/Halo_%28religious_iconography%29 "Halo (religious iconography)") of [saints](/wiki/Saint "Saint"). Gold can also be woven into sheets of silk to give an East Asian traditional look.

More recent art styles, e.g. [Art Nouveau](/wiki/Art_Nouveau "Art Nouveau"), also made use of a metallic, shining gold; however, the metallic finish of such paints was added using fine [aluminum](/wiki/Aluminum "Aluminum") powder and pigment rather than actual gold.


How is the color metallic gold defined in art?