This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2009)

Metal leaf processing

22k gold leaf applied with an ox hair brush during the process of gilding

A small gold nugget of 5mm in diameter (bottom) can be expanded to about 20,000 times its initial surface through hammering, producing a gold foil surface of about one half square meter with a thickness of about 0.2~0.3 micrometre. Toi gold mine, Japan.

Metal leaf, also called composition leaf or schlagmetal, is a thin foil used for decoration. Metal leaf can come in many different shades. Some metal leaf may look like gold leaf but not contain any real gold. This metal leaf is often referred to as imitation leaf.

Burnishing gold leaf with an agate stone tool, during the water gilding process

[edit] References